Heart's Treasures
by silvereyesangelwings
Summary: I updated! This is set a few years post UBS, and no one's madogou is destroyed. Tokiya is given custody of a little sister he never knew he had. A reunion with his former teammates makes him realize he's got a lot to be thankful for. ToFuu
1. To My Brother I Go

Summary: A few years post UBS, no one's madogou is destroyed, and Tokiya is given custody of a little sister he never knew he had. A reunion with his former teammates makes him realize he's got a lot to be thankful for. ToFuu.

**Heart's Treasures**

**Chapter 1: To My Brother I Go**

The subway train moved smoothly towards its destination. A loud blare over the speaker system woke a little girl of seven from her nap. She bolted upright and perked up her ears to whatever it was the speaker was blasting out.

"WE ARE ARRIVING SHORTLY AT TOKYO CITY SUBWAY STATION."

The little girl clambered onto her seat and reached up onto the luggage rack for her large suitcase. It refused to budge despite her tugging. Panting exasperatedly, she gave it one big yank and down came little girl, suitcase and all.

Laughter erupted around the pitiful sight on the floor: a large suitcase with legs poking out from under it.

"You shouldn't be traveling alone, dear." A lady her late thirties came over and helped the little girl up. "Where are your parents?"

A look of sadness crossed the face of the questionee. It disappeared after a second.

"They're dead." She answered, as she pulled a backpack from under her seat and slung it on.

The lady was about to say something apologetic but the little girl gave her a smile before she started to lug her suitcase towards the door of the already slowing down subway train.

The train finally came to a stop. The little girl alighted and dragged her old suitcase behind her, regretting the fact that she turned down her mentor's offer of buying her a pull-along trolley for it.

Despite the difficulty that her luggage was giving her, she found it strangely comforting. Going slowly would prolong the inevitable moment of meeting _him_. Looking around, she spotted an empty bench and made her way towards it.

As soon as she put her luggage on the bench, she fished an envelope out of her pocket and removed a photograph from it. A photograph of a teenager with long silvery – black hair and ice – blue eyes. He looked like a younger version of her father.

A name was written at the back of the photograph:

Tokiya Mikagami

"_This is your brother." _Her mentor, Megumi Kyoza had explained to her a few weeks ago. _"He's the nearest blood relative the court could trace and they gave him custody over you since he's already of legal age."_

"_I have an older brother?" _she had asked back then, shocked that her parents never told her.

"_Yes. And an older sister too. But she's…. also dead, like your parents."_

"_Does this mean I can't stay with you?"_

"_Oh, sweetie, I wish you could, but the custody hearing was very insistent on you going to live with your brother. You're all each other has now. And don't worry, he doesn't know that he has a little sister. This will be a shock for him too. The court said they'll be informing him as soon as possible so they can make the arrangements for you to go live with him."_

Her thoughts were interrupted by an old man who was clearing his throat. She looked at him questioningly and realized what he meant. Her suitcase and knapsack took up most of the space on the bench. The rest of the space was where she was standing. She blushed and mumbled an apology as she hopped down and removed her suitcase from the bench and placed it on the floor.

The man gave her a snooty look and sat down on the cleared space.

The little girl shook her head and began to scan the crowd for the person in the photograph she was holding, reminding herself to take a good look at every long haired, male teenager around her.

After about fifteen minutes of double-checking every long haired, male teenager she could see, she sighed and plopped down on the bench, putting her chin in her hands. She let her eyes wander over to the people moving up and down the escalator.

A certain figure caught her eye...

He was looking over at her too, with an unreadable expression.

She reached into her inner jacket pocket and gave her Ensui a quick grip for luck. She scooped up her backpack and picked up her large suitcase.

After a few deep breaths, she made her way towards her brother.


	2. Finally Meeting You

**Chapter 2: Finally Meeting You**

Tokiya watched the incoming train from the glass window on the second floor of the station, a whirlwind brewing from his insides. He already had her picture in his hand. He looked down at it. The Polaroid snapshot labeled 'Tanya Mikagami.' He shut his eyes; letting his memories of the past week overcome him.

FLASHBACK:

_ The sound of the doorbell ringing roused Tokiya from his trancelike state, from reading and rereading the child custody letter he had received a few days ago. The phone call that followed that letter led to this moment._

_ He stood up and opened the door. A woman in her late thirties stood there. There was no doubt this was his former mentor's sister. They had the same physical features, and almost the same aura of power._

"_Hello. You must be Tokiya." She smiled._

"_Yes." Tokiya mustered up a grin. "Come on in."_

_ He lead her to his apartment's living room and bade her to sit down on the couch then he excused himself and went to get a couple of drinks from the kitchen. _

_He returned and sat across her, passing a glass of lemonade across the coffee table._

"You are _Megumi Kyoza, am I right?" _

_The woman nodded. "Yes."_

_ The silence that followed her reply seemed to fill up the space between them, but finally, she spoke again._

_ "Forgive me if I stare. I know this might be painful for you to hear, but you look so much like your father..."_

_Tokiya nodded. "I"m sure you meant it as a compliment. Thank you."_

_Megumi smiled. "And now, I feel I owe you a huge explanation."_

"_That you do." Tokiya leaned back and took a sip of his own lemonade._

_ Megumi shifted uncomfortably. "I was hoping I would be able to call you before they sent you that child custody letter. I found out they dispatched it the moment the custody hearing was over. The shock must still be overwhelming for you up till now."_

_ Tokiya watched the condensation drip down his glass and wet his fingers. He looked up at his guest and found her to be smiling sympathetically. He found it strangely warm, so unlike Meguri's cold sneer._

_ "This is all very sudden, but I'm willing to take her in. In fact, I insist upon it. We're... we're all each other has now."_

"_I find I'm extremely surprised to hear you say that. You never even knew she existed." Megumi put her glass down on its coaster. "_

_ Tokiya swallowed a mouthful of lemonade. "It doesn't change the fact that I am her brother."_

_ Megumi let out a chuckle. "You'll have to excuse me for being so brash. It's just... I've gotten quite attached to the little imp you're agreeing to take in. Now that she'll be living with you, I won't get to see her as much. She always makes my day, one way or another."_

_ Tokiya felt the corners of his mouth stretch into a grin. "That makes me a bit more anxious to meet her."_

_ His guest gave him a sincere smile. "I guarantee you that she'll be quite a handful. Now, I want to tell you what really happened to your parents."_

_The Ensui – Master leaned forward._

"_I'll start from the beginning: They weren't killed, Tokiya. I was able to stop my brother from taking their lives. When he found out that I had them go into hiding, he immediately searched for you and Mifuyu and…. well…."_

"_He had her killed." Tokiya finished, returning his gaze to the yellow depths of his drink._

"_I was too late in trying to stop him. Your parents begged me to come and get the two of you. When I arrived at the scene, I saw your sister dead and no sign of you. I knew he must have wanted you alive, so I went to his house to retrieve you. He fought me off." Megumi lifted her left sleeve to reveal a deep red welt. "I still bear the scar from that night."_

_ Tokiya felt his insides churn. "I feel ashamed to be the cause of pain on your account." He bowed his head. "I am sorry."_

_ "No. It is I who should be apologizing. I should have brought someone along. It was stupid of me, thinking I could face Meguri alone." _

_Tokiya shut his eyes. _

_ Megumi continued. "Anyway, your parents were devastated at what happened to you and Mifuyu. Out of fear of what my brother would do, I had them live in the same village I was living in Hokkaido, so I could watch them and protect them at all costs. They begged me to let them come see you, but again I was foolish in my fears. I forbade them to have anything to do with you. The only news they would get about you came from me. So they know that you were part of the team that won the Urabutousatsoujin two years ago. Team Hokage, right?" _

_Tokiya nodded. "How did you…."_

"_I have my ways." Megumi laughed. "My brother isn't the only one with useful contacts. Your parents were so proud of you, by the way."_

_Tokiya found himself smiling genuinely._

"_Let's take this story back eight years ago, and that's where Tanya comes in." Meguri removed a Polaroid snapshot from her purse and passed it to Tokiya across the table. _

_ "Your parents had her, as I said, eight years ago. They were quite protective of her, but don't let the looks fool you. She's one courageous spirit. That's why your parents let me train her to wield a Madougou at such a young age."_

_"A Madougou?"_

_"An Ensui, much like yours, only that, instead of water, it is powered by fire."_

_"So, she must be…."_

"_Pyrokinetic, yes. It didn't take her long to master the element of fire, but she still needs to improve on her control."_

_ Tokiya stared at the snapshot. A little girl with silvery eyes stared back at him. The same silver eyes that his older sister and their father shared. She looked like a younger version of Mifuyu, only this time with ebony – black hair he recognized likely to be inherited from their mother. This was his little sister, hands down._

_"So, she must be eight years old by now?"_

"_She's turning eight this September 29." Megumi answered._

"_When will she be arriving here?" Tokiya asked. _

"_Next week, Friday. You can expect some of her belongings to arrive by tomorrow" _

_Tokiya slumped. That gave him a little more than seven days to fix up a suitable room._

_ "I hope you don't mind me saying, Tokiya, but you're more mature than I expected. Even more than most nineteen-year-olds I know." _

_"Thank you." _

_ Megumi's fingers twisted in her lap. "I feel your energy too. I can tell you've still been training. You hide it well. At least that's one good thing my brother taught you." _

_ A fond smile crossed her face, as a thought sprang to her mind. "Tanya can't seem to master hiding her energy and I can't seem to get her to understand how. Perhaps you will have better luck teaching her."_

"_I'll do my best." Tokiya promised. "I'll take good care of her."_

"_I'll hold you to that." Megumi smiled. "Oh, and by way, the money your parents left will be added up to your current financial account. It should be enough to get you and Tanya through the rest of your schoolyears. The people in charge of child support at the custody hearing took the liberty of enrolling her in Tokyo Elementary School."_

_ Tokiya breathed a sigh of relief. That was one item he could cross off his 'To Do' list. "Please thank them for me."_

_ Megumi nodded as she glanced at her watch. Sighing, she stood up. "I'm afraid I have to go. I need to do a few errands." She reached into her purse, pulled out a business card and handed it to him. "You can reach me at this number if you need to know anything else."_

_Tokiya stood up as well. "There is one thing I need to know before you go."_

_Megumi raised her eyebrows._

_"You didn't mention how my parents…. died." _

_ Megumi's eyes seemed to get teary. "Their house was burned, and they were trapped inside. Tanya was at school when it happened. When she got home from the bus stop, the fire was put out already. Only a small section of the house burned down, with your mother and father in it…. I didn't even know about the fire until Tanya called me up at my office."_

_For a minute, Tokiya felt that seething fury he felt on the night Mifuyu was killed. His heart ached. _

"_There were traces to make it look like it had been and accident, but to a better-trained eye, it looked so planned out. They still haven't found out who the culprits are, and frankly, they don't have much people to question. Even I was pulled in by the police to be interrogated." Megumi wiped her eyes with the back of her hand._

_Silence._

_ Tokiya let out a breath he realized he'd been holding and walked Megumi to the door. "Thank you for taking the time to come here."_

"_No problem."_

_ He watched his former mentor's sister push a button on her keychain. Two beeps signaled that her car was unlocked. She opened the driver's door and made to get in, then saw her seemingly conceal another laugh before turning around._

"_Oh, and Tokiya?"_

_He looked up._

"_Fight the urge to spoil Tanya, hmm?"_

END FLASHBACK

Energy seemed to reverberate through the air. It was young, uncontrolled, and fiery. Tokiya's eyes flew open. This was _her_ energy. It had to be. It stood out, as clear as though she was standing right next to him.

His eyes scanned the stream of people leaving the train, tracing the path of youthful power. It's owner finally disembarked from the train.

_ "That's her."_ Tokiya recognized her the moment he saw her. An amused smile came to his lips as he remembered Megumi telling him over the phone last night that Tanya insisted on riding the train to Tokyo alone.

He watched her mount a bench and scan the crowd, undoubtedly looking for him. A while later, she had to get down and remove her luggage from the bench so that an old man could sit.

Tokiya tore his gaze from the window and took the escalator down. Tanya's gaze seemed to find him as he descended; he saw her face go through a myriad of emotions. She reached inside her coat, seemingly to grip something in there, then finally picked up her luggage and made her way towards him.

Tokiya took a few calming breaths as he got off the escalator.

_"This is it. Now or never, Mikagami."_


	3. First Moments

**Chapter 3: First Moments**

The world seemed to go in slow motion as they made their way towards each other. Through the noise and the crowds of people at the station, they found one another. No texts, phone calls, or letters. Just photographs, and the pull of shared blood.

It seemed to Tokiya that he had only just blinked a second ago, but now, here she was.

"Hello. You must be Tanya. I'm your brother, Tokiya Mikagami."

Tanya's silvery gaze seemed to relax. Her energy was still pulsing out, unhidden. Anyone with the skill could have felt it even if he or she was a couple of blocks away from the train station.

This unnerved Tokiya. He expanded his power to envelop her energy, concealing it. He saw her eyes widen as she felt his energy surround hers.

"Don't worry." He said, reassuringly, as he reached for her suitcase. "It's safer if I do that."

She let go of her luggage handle and stood there, looking up at him, drinking him in. He met her eyes.

She shifted her gaze to his shoes. _'Really nice shoes.'_ She thought.

Tokiya tilted her chin up with a finger so she would look at him again. He smiled. "You must be hungry. Come on, let's go get some lunch."

He easily hefted up her suitcase and watched her shift her knapsack into a more comfortable position on her back. He held out a hand towards her. She stared at it for a moment, hesitant.

It was a good couple of minutes before she placed her hand into his.

Tokiya gripped it protectively, and together, they went out of the train station.

Tanya could not hide her surprise when they got to the parking lot.

"You own a Ferrari?"

Tokiya laughed at her wide-eyed expression. "Yeah." It was a gift for his eighteenth birthday from some weird distant relatives who lived in America.

"Awesome!" his little sister ran a hand down the silver convertible.

"Glad you think so." He unlocked the doors and stowed her suitcase in the trunk.

He waited for Tanya to get into the passenger seat. They both fastened their seatbelts and left the parking lot.

"Whoa…." Tanya watched the sights whirl past the window as they drove along.

"Want the top down?" Tokiya asked.

Tanya's silver eyes lit up as she nodded vigorously.

"Okay then."Tokiya pressed a button on the dashboard. The car's top began to fold back, letting in refreshingly cool air.

"YEAH!" Tanya lifted her arms. "This is so cool!… I mean….." she glanced nervously at Tokiya.

Her brother laughed. "It's okay, yell all you want."

She laughed too, and then let out a cry. "WOOHOO!"

She spread her arms higher and knelt on the car seat.

When the excitement died, Tokiya playfully pulled her back down into a sitting position. "So, where do you want to eat?"

"Uhhh… I.." Tanya shyly fidgeted. "I feel like eating pasta today. "

"You read my mind." Tokiya grinned at her.

Tanya smiled back, eyes glowing with mischievous innocence. "Okay, now your turn to do the mind reading. What kind of pasta do I want?" she shut her silver orbs tight..

"I'm sensing…. That you want baked macaroni and cheese." He said, keeping his eyes on the road.

Her eyes opened in astonishment. "How…you…. Did Sensei Megumi tell you a lot of stuff about me?"

"Of course she did, but she didn't tell me what your favorite foods are."

"Then how did you know I like Mac n' Cheese?"

"A lucky guess?" Tokiya answered, laughing.

Tanya laughed too as she bounced in her seat. "Know what?"

"What?"

"Judging from the picture of you that Sensei gave me, I thought you'd be as cold as an ice cube."

Tokiya turned to look at her, smiling. Where did he hear that phrase 'cold as an ice cube' before?

"Really?"

Tanya nodded, then her expression changed. "Is it really okay for me to stay with you?"

"Yes." Her brother answered firmly.

"I believe I didn't say thank you yet." Tanya said. "I don't normally hug, but I'd hug you if only you weren't driving."

Tokiya surprised himself as he laughed. "You owe me one then."

Silence reigned in the car after that. Tokiya couldn't believe he was warming to her already. Him, telling her she owed him a hug? He barely even knew her apart from everything Megumi told him.

He glanced at her again. She was staring out the window, her back to him. He could see her reflection in the glass: curiosity and amazement. There was also a trace of sadness. That was the one he wasn't surprised to find. He understood how it must feel, moving to a new place. He also took in her physical features. It was only now that he noticed that she had a rather pale complexion.

Almost inaudibly, he asked. "Are you all right?"

Tanya turned to him, looking confused. "Yes. Why?"

"Do you miss your friends?"

Tanya hesitated before she said: "I didn't have much time for any. It was always studies and training first. I had some…. friends, in school, but I never hung out with them much. I always had to go straight home for my training, and then do my homework afterwards."

Tokiya nodded. "I'm sure you'll make a lot of friends here."

She nodded. "I hope so. I kinda wanna know what it feels like to be around people my age, besides school."

They had reached the busier district of the city. Tokiya wove his way through traffic towards Nooza, one of his favorite pizza and pasta places. Thankfully, they only had to wait for one car at the drive-through.

Tanya looked surprised. "Are we eating….umm… at home?"

Tokiya shook his head, giving her another one of his rare smiles. "I thought you might want to have a picnic at the park a few blocks from our house."

Her eyes lit up. "Really?" Her brother nodded.

She extended a pale hand and squeezed his arm. "Thank you."

His smile couldn't help but grow.


	4. A Surprising Afternoon

**Chapter 4: A Surprising Afternoon**

Tokiya parked his car at the edge of the enormous park. He watched as Tanya gathered up the food packages and exit the passenger side. She followed him to one of his favorite spots: a bench near a fountain shaped like an enormous fish.

"Wow." Tanya breathed, looking around. "This park is really big! And it's only a few blocks from your house?"

"Our house." Tokiya corrected her. "And yes, it's only a short distance away. About a five minute walk." He passed her a Styrofoam container of macaroni and cheese and a plastic fork.

He watched intently as she ate up her lunch, pausing once in a while to drink from one of the mineral waters he had purchased. She had an appetite, that was for sure, but the way she ate reminded him of himself.

"Pizza?" Tokiya offered her a slice from the foil package he just unwrapped.

"Yes, please." Tanya put down her empty Styrofoam container and accepted a hot slice of pepperoni pizza from her brother. "Hey! This is my favorite too!"

"Well, that's one more thing we have in common." Tokiya commented, his traitorous lips twitching up into another smile.

Tanya laughed and choked on her mouthful of pizza. Tokiya immediately stood up and began to pat her on the back.

"Easy, Tanya. Drink some water."

Tanya did so and then caught her breath. The siblings finished their meal in silence, enjoying the scent of flowers brought by the slight wind.

_ 'Wind.'_ Tokiya thought, feeling a bit bittersweet. He hadn't contacted any of his teammates since he left for college. They had flooded his celfone and his email with messages, but he couldn't bring himself to reply to their increasing pleas of wanting to know where he was. He thought he could start a new life. Make something of himself before he came back to impress them. He saw how much they had in each other, and he was always the outsider.

He felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Everything okay, Nee-san?" Tanya looked up at him, concerned.

"I'm fine." Tokiya threw the food wrappings (there weren't any leftovers) into the nearby garbage can.

Other people started to come to the park. An old man was helping his grandson up the slide. A mother was watching her two children play in the sandbox.

"May I go play on the swings?" Tanya asked all of a sudden.

"Sure." Tokiya surprised himself and stood up to go with her to the old swing set. It was a very sturdy model, with strong chains. Tanya selected one and sat down. She was about to kick off from the ground to start swinging, when she felt the swing move forward. She turned her head to see her brother pushing.

"Thanks." She smiled and settled herself securely.

Tokiya pushed his sister higher and higher, enjoying the sound of her laugh as she soared up and back down repeatedly.

"Whoa!" he heard her exclaim. "Now this is really high!"

Ooops. He hadn't meant to push her too high. He caught the back of the swing in order to lower it a bit but the motion ended up sending Tanya flying off the seat.

"Ooof!" She landed on the ground.

"Tanya! I'm sorry!" He ran around the swing and knelt down next to her. She looked up and attempted to brush the grass stains and dirt off her shirt. To his surprise she laughed.

"I'm okay." She confirmed, with a grin patting her arms and legs.

"You need babysitting experience, Mi-Chan." came a familiar voice behind them.

He knew that tone. Tokiya stood up and turned around to find -"Fuuko." He greeted her. "It's been a while."

"Still as cold as ever." Fuuko Kirisawa, for indeed it was she, smiled at him. She gestured to Tanya who was hiding behind her brother, clutching the back of his shirt. "And who might this be?"

Tokiya didn't know what to say. He hadn't told anyone he had custody of a sister he didn't even know existed till only a couple of weeks ago, plus he wasn't exactly expecting to see his Hokage teammates now that he was well into his second year of college. He didn't exactly know which universities they were in. It was a surprising fact that all of them had actually _graduated_ high school.

"Hello?" Fuuko waved a hand in front of his face. "Earth to Mi-Chan. You there?"

Tokiya took a deep breath and answered. "This is my sister, Tanya Mikagami."

"Your-?" Fuuko stared from him to Tanya and back again.

"My little sister." Tokiya continued.

Fuuko's surprised expression drew his attention to how much she had changed physically in the years they didn't see each other. Her hair was longer now, reaching down the middle of her back, and the way she dressed was a lot less boyish than before.

"Seems we have a lot of catching up to do." Fuuko stated. "I just moved into Pine West Apartments. It's not far from here. I decided to do a bit of exploring around the neighborhood and what do you know? I run into you."

"You just moved here?" Tokiya raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. I got into Tokyo University, and so did Yanagi, Recca and Domon."

Tokiya's eyebrow never wavered. "Yanagi, I understand, but how did you two sea-monkeys and that gorilla-"

"WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?" Fuuko balled up both her fists

"You heard me." Tokiya replied, nonchalantly. "Well, I'll be seeing you around then."

He took Tanya's hand and began to walk toward the direction he parked.

"You're still a stupid Eskimo!" Fuuko's voice sounded exasperated, rather than angry. "If your little sister wasn't with you I'd…"

Tanya tugged at Tokiya's hand. He looked down at her. She pulled her hand out of his grasp, went over to Fuuko and held out her hand.

"I'm Tanya."

Fuuko had to smile at the gesture. She shook the little girl's hand. "I'm Fuuko Kirisawa."

"My mentor mentioned you when she told me about my brother fighting in the Urabutousatsujin." Tanya said. " You can wield the Fuujin?"

"Yes." Fuuko replied, astonished. "Who -?"

"We need to be getting home." Tokiya interrupted. "Come on, Tanya." He took her hand again and led her away.

Tanya turned around and called. "It was nice meeting you!"

Fuuko waved back, dazed.

'_Tokiya has a little sister?'_

The weather was getting chilly when Tokiya pulled up at the driveway of his house. He and Tanya began to take her things inside.

Tokiya lead the way up the stairs to a room that was above his.

"This will be your room." He said, opening the door, and allowing Tanya to precede him inside.

"Wow! All my books are unpacked already!" Tanya walked over to the bookcase Tokiya had already arranged.

"You seem to like reading very much." Tokiya said.

Tanya nodded. "And writing and drawing too." She fingered the neat arrangement of her volumes, then opened the closet to find most of her clothes already fixed up.

"Thank you!" She ran to Tokiya and hugged him. "You went through all this trouble?"

"It was no trouble at all." Tokiya found himself returning the hug. "Do you need help unpacking?"

"Nope."

"All right. I need to do a few things downstairs. Call if you need me."

Tanya nodded and started to unlock her suitcase. She heard her brother leave the room and go down the stairs. She began to unpack.

Tokiya paced the living room of his house, throwing glances at the phone from time to time. He was definitely rude to her at the park. And since he would be seeing his Hokage teammates around for they were going to the same university he was, she was right, they did have a lot of catching up to do.

He removed the phone book from a drawer beneath the desk that held the phone and flipped through the yellow pages till he found the number for Pine West Apartments.

"BEEEEEEP!"

"Hey, this is Fuuko Kirisawa. I can't answer the phone right now. Leave me a message and I'll call you as soon as I can."

Fuuko came in just in time to hear the phone. She quickly closed the door to her apartment and dashed for the living room. It was probably Yanagi. She had made Fuuko promise to go shopping with her, to which Fuuko had begged to get out of, but was unsuccessful.

The voice that issued from the answering machine wasn't the one she expected.

"Hey Fuuko, this is Tokiya. I'm sorry about being rude at the park earlier. You're right, we really have some catching up to do and-"

Before she knew what she was doing, Fuuko picked up the receiver.

"Hello, Mi-Chan?"

"Fuuko?" his voice sounded different. A tone warmer than before.

"I just came in." Fuuko slumped down on an armchair. "So what were you saying?"

"I was just apologizing for being rather rude to you at the park earlier today. And I was wondering if you, Recca, Yanagi, and that gorilla, Domon, would want to get together sometime this week? I owe you all an explanation about Tanya. If you could get Kaoru and Ganko and Kagerou to come too, I'd appreciate it. I don't know how to contact them."

"Can you rewind to the part where you were apologizing to me? Man, I need to record that. The great Tokiya Mikagami, ice block, is actually apologizing to someo-"

She heard him sigh on the other end of the line.

"All right, All right. Hey, can you blame me for acting this way? I've never heard you apologize for anything before."

"Ha ha." Tokiya said, sarcastically.

"Don't get your precious hair all messed up. I'll give everybody a call and get them to come. You owe us a lengthy explanation, Mi-Chan, starting with why you left for college without saying good-bye to us."

"I- what?" Tokiya stuttered.

"You heard me." Fuuko teased, imitating his nonchalant tone from earlier. "I need to go, Mi-Chan. Bye!"

Tokiya stared at the cordless phone in his hands.

"_Don't get your precious hair all messed up. I'll give everybody a call and get them to come. You owe us a lengthy explanation, Mi-Chan, starting with why you left for college without saying good-bye to us."_

They wanted him to explain why he left without saying good-bye.

Like they really cared about him.

Tanya found her brother in this predicament, staring at a cordless phone he was holding.

"Erm…? Tokiya?" She tugged on his shirt. "You okay?"

Tokiya seemed to snap out of his reverie at the sound of her voice. "Yes. Come on. Want to help me in the kitchen?" He led the way to the kitchen.

"Sure." Tanya started to follow him. A picture caught on the wall caught her eye.

She took the frame off the hook and brought it over to Tokiya.

"Who's this?"

A lump formed in Tokiya's throat. "Mifuyu."

"Mifuyu?" Tanya's eyes widened.

"She was our older sister." Tokiya explained. "And she -"

"Died." Tanya finished for him. She looked down at the photograph. "Sensei Megumi told me about her, and what happened to you when she was killed." Tears were forming in her eyes, and she swiped them away with the back of her hand.

"It's a shame you never got to meet her. You two look a lot alike." Tokiya said, in a strangled voice. He watched as Tanya hung the photo back on the wall, then forced a smile and said; "Let's go get something to drink."

Tanya took another glance at Mifuyu's photograph and followed her brother into the kitchen.

Tokiya set down a pot on the table. He saw Tanya looking around the kitchen, absorbing every detail.

He smiled and removed two big mugs from a cupboard.

"Come and sit down. This tea's best when it's hot."

Tanya came over and accepted the mug her brother handed to her. He filled both their mugs and they sat down.

"Was Fuuko really your teammate in the Urabutousatsujin tournament?" Tanya took a sip of her tea.

"Yes. She was." Tokiya answered, setting down his mug.

"She's really pretty." Tanya said, observantly.

'Well, she's changed since I saw her last. She used to be such a tomboy. Her hair was a lot shorter too."

"Shorter than yours?" Tanya grinned at him.

"Yes." Tokiya answered, returning the smile.

"Your hair is still longer than hers, and even longer than mine." Tanya took a long swig from her mug. "Don't get a haircut yet. I like your hair that way."

"Fine." Tokiya said. "As long as you do the same."

"Deal."


	5. The Workings of Fate

**Chapter 5: The Workings of Fate**

Fuuko stepped out of the shower, drying her hair with a towel. She had called up Yanagi after Tokiya's call and the Healer had promised to inform Recca, Domon, and Kagerou about it. She had texted up Ganko on her cellphone to invite her and Kaoru. The two had sent her a text message to say that they would be able to make it this week.

She pulled on a change of clothes and plopped down on her couch. She stared up at the cracks on the ceiling, mulling over the day's events.

Tokiya's cold streak apparently hadn't changed a bit. Physically though, he had grown a few inches taller. He had gone from gangly teen to slim bishounen. He certainly filled out in a muscular sense...

Fuuko shook her head. She was doing it again. 'It' being that habit of sizing up her opponent before a fight.

Tokiya wasn't an opponent. In fact, she didn't know what to consider him as besides a teammate. He had gone and left without saying goodbye.

_'And now, it seems fate let our paths cross again.' _Fuuko thought as she got up from the couch.

She made for her bedroom and caught sight of herself in the full-length mirror.

'_Is that how I look like, now?' _she stepped forward and touched the mirror.

She was surprised at her appearance. She never really paid any attention to it before. She just agreed to Yanagi's suggestion of letting her hair grow long for a change, but she never spent more than ten minutes in front of the mirror, preferring to either keep her hair back in a ponytail or a headband, to keep things simple. Her curves were a bit more noticeable now that she was wearing shorts and a tank top.

She shook her head and trudged back out the door and into the kitchen. Maybe a snack would help clear her head.

It was plain that a peanut butter and jelly sandwich wasn't really helping. Fuuko swallowed the last of her PBJ and put the plate in the sink. She usually left the dishwashing till after dinner.

"BRIIIIIIIING!"

Fuuko hurried to the phone and picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Fuuko-san?"

"Hey, Yanagi-kun!"

"I called up Recca and Domon. They said they owe their favorite Ice Boy a knuckle sandwich each for leaving without saying good-bye."

"I'm feeling the same way right about now." Fuuko admitted.

"So, how is he? What was it like seeing him?"

"It wasn't so bad. And he seems to be fine. He owes us a couple of explanations though."

"A couple of explanations?" Yanagi sounded puzzled.

"Yes." Fuuko replied, staring at one of the framed pictures on the desk where she kept the phone. It was of the whole Hokage team, fresh after the UBS. Tokiya was actually mustering up a smile in that picture, and he had a hand on her shoulder. She felt herself turn pink.

"Fuuko? You still there?" came Yanagi's voice.

"Yeah. Sorry, I was thinking about something."

"What's the second thing he has to explain to us?"

"You'll see." Fuuko answered. "I think it'll be a long story."

"All right, then." Yanagi said. "Recca says his mother will be driving up here tomorrow to stay with him and Domon for a while. Will Kaoru and Ganko be able to make it?"

"Yeah. They're coming too. We just have to tell them when."

"Great! Well how about this coming Friday?"

"I'll ask Tokiya, then I'll let you know."

"Okay. See you soon! Ja ne!"

"Ja ne!"

Fuuko hung up the phone slowly and headed back to the kitchen, her mind not on preparing dinner.

_'You owe us more than 'a couple of explanations' Mi-Chan. And for your sake, they'd better be good.'_


	6. Plans

**Chapter 6: Plans**

Tanya awoke early. The ginger-cat shaped clock on the table by her bed read 4:57 AM. She groaned and sat up. She was having more and more trouble getting sleep ever since that day she came home to find her parents dead inside their almost-burned-down house. Sighing, she pulled her Ensui out from under her pillow and stared at it. She hadn't gotten around to showing it to her brother yet. Sensei Megumi had said that Tokiya had an Ensui too.

A knock on her door made her look up.

"Come in."

Tokiya opened the door and came inside. "I had this feeling you needed me. Why are you awake? It's still early."

"I just woke up and I can't seem to get myself to feel sleepy anymore." His sister answered. She held out the object in her hands.

"Your Ensui?" Tokiya asked, fingering it. "It's a lot like mine, only longer, and without this groove in the middle."

Tanya snapped the Ensui cleanly in two on the groove line. "It's a double blade." She explained. He watched him look at it for a few moments.

"Be right back." Tokiya said suddenly, and he stood up and left the room.

He returned with his own Ensui in hand. He showed it to her. "Your Sensei told me yours is powered by fire. I use water for mine."

Tanya looked at him. "Can you show me?"

"First thing after breakfast." Tokiya promised her, ruffling her hair. "Now get some more sleep. We both had better enjoy these two weeks of winter break." He waited as she shoved her Ensui under her pillow and then he tucked in the blankets around her before leaving the room.

Tokiya headed for the living room, finding it impossible to go back to sleep. He slumped down on the couch and stared at the Ensui in his hand.

'_Fire. Fire and Water.'_

He shook his head to clear it.

'_How can she wield a Madougou at the age of seven? Pyrokinesis. I might have another Recca on my hands.' _He grinned wryly at the thought.

He turned to stare out the window, chin on his hands, and was still in the same position when the sun rose.

It was seven o' clock when he heard Tanya's footsteps come down the stairs. Her aura preceded her into the kitchen.

"Good morning!" She greeted him, stifling a yawn.

"Same to you." Tokiya removed a carton of milk from the fridge. "Let's have some breakfast."

She came over to him and he lifted her up to reach into one of the higher cupboards.

"You can pick out today's cereal."

Tanya laughed and put her hand in among the boxes. "You actually like Cocoa Pops?"

"And Oreo cereal."

"I thought you'd be one of those bran-flake types." Tanya pulled out the box of Cocoa Pops.

"I was." Tokiya set her back down and they went to go sit at the table. "But a certain purple-haired sea-monkey made me eat some of this stuff two years ago at a certain tournament." He doled out a bowlful for his sister before serving himself.

"Fuuko taught you how to eat Cocoa Pops?" Tanya laughed harder. "You've been stuffing your face with bran gravel every morning till a couple of years ago?"

"Not every morning. I don't eat cereal everyday." Tokiya spooned a mouthful of the chocolate crispies into his mouth.

Tanya laughed some more and started on her own cereal. Tokiya poured a glass of milk for each of them.

His sister stared at her drink with a thoughtful expression. "You said your Ensui is powered by water."

"Liquid." Tokiya took a swig from his glass. "In the Urabutousatsujin, I had to use my own blood once."

"What?" Tanya's eyes widened.

Tokiya swallowed. He just blurted it out. Why did it already so comfortable talking to her? He only met her yesterday, for crying out loud!

"You used your own blood?" Tanya's expression looked horrified. "You could have been killed!"

"Well, I'm stronger than you think, as you can see, I'm still very much alive." Tokiya chuckled.

Tanya still looked at him warily.

"It's over now. You probably won't see me use that technique." He assured her.

Tanya finally nodded and finished up her cereal. She stared at her glass of milk again.

"Liquid powered." She reached for the milk carton and held it out. "Have you tried milk?"

Tokiya had to laugh.

"I'm serious!" Tanya frowned at him.

"I wasn't exactly taught how to power it with milk." Tokiya laughed louder. "But here. As promised, I'll show you how I power my Ensui up."

He crossed over to the sink, turned on a tap and held his Ensui under it. A blade of ice formed, jutting from the handle.

"Cool!" Tanya came over and he handed it to her. She tried a few strikes with it. He stared at her, surprised.

'_She really does know how to fight.'_

"What?" Tanya stared at his expression. "Oh, hold on!" She fished her Ensui out of her pajama pocket. "I'll show you how mine works."

Tokiya watched, fascinated. She snapped her fingers and a tongue of flame ignited on her thumb, she broke her Ensui on the middle groove and touched the fire from her thumb on the tips of the hilts. Two blades of swirling crimson and orange formed.

"Impressive." He said, as she handed the two blades to him. "Sensei Megumi told me you were Pyrokinetic."

Tanya nodded. "I had to learn how to control it when I was five." She gave her brother's Ensui back to him. "Want to spar?"

Tokiya raised his eyebrows. "You want to spar with me?"

"Yes." Tanya gave him a challenging grin.

"You don't know what you've gotten yourself into." Tokiya grinned back.

Tokiya and Tanya faced each other outside in the backyard of their house. The younger Mikagami twirled her double blades.

"Don't go easy on me."

"I was about to say the same thing." Tokiya said, smiling slyly.

She suddenly lashed out, striking forward. Tokiya barely brought up his blade in time. He parried her strikes, stepping backward, giving ground.

She was good, he had to admit it. Much like his younger self. The only thing was, her aura of power was coming out in full force, making her weak moments vulnerable. He struck out and managed to slap one of her blades out of her hand.

She smiled and switched her remaining blade to her right hand and continued to drive him backward. Her strikes were getting harder to block, and she was speeding up. She nearly knocked his Ensui out of his hand on one hit and only his reflexive dodge prevented it from happening. Taking advantage of his position behind her, he chinked her last blade out of her hand, making her fall forward. He smiled at her expression.

"Care for Round Two?"

Tanya smirked, got up, and retrieved her blades."You're on!"

"BRIIIIIIIIIINNG!"

Both siblings turned their heads toward the house.

"Let's continue this later. I'm going to have to teach you a few things too, starting with how to hide your aura." Tokiya allowed his blade to melt and led the way inside. Tanya's blades disappeared in a flare of fire and ash. She reassembled her Ensui and followed her brother back into the house.

"BRRRRIIIIINNNNG!"

"Hello, Mikagami residence. Tokiya speaking."

"Morning, Mi-Chan. It's me."

"How on Earth did you get my number, Kirisawa?"

"Caller ID." Fuuko stated, matter-of-factly. "So, the get-together is on. Everybody's coming. Yanagi suggested this Friday, and I said I'd ask you if you were free."

"That's tomorrow." Tokiya mused. He glanced at his Tanya, who was looking at him intently.

"All right. Tomorrow then. Meet you all at Cream Explosion."

"Where?"

"One of the ice-cream places at the mall, Sea-Monkey."

"YOU IDIOTIC FROST MAN! STOP CALLING ME THAT!"

Obviously overhearing, Tanya laughed. Tokiya grabbed a cushion from the nearest armchair and playfully whacked her on the head.

"Okay, Cream Explosion it is. 4:00 sharp. See you tomorrow."

"All right. See you Mi-Chan. Say hi to Tanya for me. Are you sure she's your sister? She seems really sweet, unlike you, you insufferable moron. "

"Very funny. Bye."

Tokiya hung up and relayed Fuuko's hello to his sister. They both slumped down on the couch.

"What's Cream Explosion?" Tanya inquired.

"An ice cream parlor." Tokiya explained. "I'd like you to meet some friends of mine tomorrow. They're the rest of Team Hokage."

"I'll get to meet them?" Tanya's eyes widened happily. "Great! Sensei Megumi told me you guys won the Urabutousatsujin!"

Tokiya picked a up a photo frame lying on the coffee table and handed it to her.

"That was us during the tournament days." He pointed out himself and Fuuko and introduced the rest of the team: Recca Hanabishi, Sakoshita Yanagi, Ishijima Domon, Kaoru Koganei, Kagerou, and Ganko.

Tanya fingered Yanagi's image and stared from it to the photo of Mifuyu. Her mouth fell open.

"Yes." Tokiya said, before she could say anything. "She looks like Mifuyu Neesan, doesn't she?"

Tanya nodded, awestruck.

"You'll meet them all tomorrow." Tokiya reached over to hug her.


	7. The Reunion

**Chapter 7: The Reunion**

'_4:45. Late again, as usual.' _Tokiya sighed, glancing at his watch. He was sitting down under one of the clean white umbrellas outside Cream Explosion, watching Tanya throw a coin into the mall's fountain nearby. The rest of the Hokage Gang was nowhere in sight.

He smiled, remembering the scene earlier.

FLASHBACK:

"_Ready to go?" Tokiya came out of his room holding an armful of what looked like colorful cloth._

"_Yup." Tanya nodded. She pointed to what he was holding. "What are those?"_

"_I got these for you." He emptied everything he was carrying into a drawer on a desk. He held up a red beanie. (read: like the beanies hip hop people wear, and what some people use for cold weather.)_

"_Here." He slipped it on his sister's head._

"_A hat?" Tanya asked, fingering the small, puffy ball of fluff on top of the beanie._

"_So I can find you easily. I want you to wear one every time we go out together. The hats are for cold climate, I got you bandannas for warmer weather."_

"_So this is your way of making sure you'll be able to find me?" Tanya grinned._

"_Exactly." Tokiya tugged on her ponytail._

END FLASHBACK

"Hey! Mi-Chan!"

"Mikagami-sempai!"

He turned in the direction of the two familiar female voices when two fists came hurtling out of nowhere and slammed into his stomach. He nearly fell off his chair.

"Tokiya, you girly IDIOT!"

"Where have you been, you moron? Leaving without saying good-bye… stupid BAKA!"

"What….was that…for?" Tokiya managed to gasp, trapped as he was in Recca and Domon's armlock.

"For going off to college without telling us where!" Recca used his free hand to mess up the Ensui master's hair.

"Good to see you, Mikagami-sempai." Yanagi came forward and smiled at him.

"Hello, Yanagi." Tokiya said, as Domon and Recca released him.

"Tokiya!" Kaoru slapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey, brat." Tokiya returned the gesture. "Nice to see you too." He began to fix his mussed hair and re-tied it back into a ponytail. "Hello Kagerou. Hey Ganko."

"Hello Tokiya." Kagerou greeted him. Ganko gave Tokiya a hug.

"Where's-?" Fuuko started to ask.

Tokiya nodded in the direction of the fountain.

"Where's who?" Recca demanded, following their gazes.

"All of you, please sit down." Tokiya gestured to the large table he had been saving. "I guess I'd better start with why I left without saying good-bye."

"This better be good." Domon commented, sliding out a chair.

Tokiya found all gazes on him. He took a few deep breaths before speaking.

"I'm sorry." He started. "I just didn't know why I left without coming to see any of you. Being part of a team was new to me. I didn't know the feeling of having comrades or friends till I joined you. The truth is, I didn't know how I was going to say good-bye, so I figured maybe it would be best if I just left."

"You really hurt us you know." Fuuko's eyes had a soft expression . "We wondered where you moved to when we heard you got accepted into Tokyo University."

"Yeah. And we were surprised when Fuuko said she bumped into you the other day at a park." Yanagi added. "After all these years, sempai. We didn't think you'd want to see us again."

"You got us worried." Kagerou crossed her legs. "Didn't you think we would be upset when we couldn't find you?"

"The thought did cross my mind." Tokiya admitted.

Silence. Then Kaoru spoke up. "I guess we're all relieved to find you're all right. I can drive me and Ganko and Miss Kagerou down here when we have a Team hangout, that is, if you won't be avoiding us, Tokiya."

Kagerou and Ganko nodded in agreement.

"I won't be avoiding you." Tokiya promised. "It's good to see you all again."

"I'll admit even I missed you, you big lug." Recca grinned. "It's about time you let us back into your life again."

They all laughed.

Yanagi returned her gaze to Tokiya. "Fuuko said something about two explanations. Is there something else you wanted to tell us, sempai?"

Tokiya nodded slowly, gripping the table. He met Fuuko's gaze, and she nodded encouragingly.

"I have a-"

"Sir, is this your daughter?" a security guard interrupted. He held a grimacing Tanya by the ear.

Team Hokage, except Fuuko, tipped over, animé- style.

"DAUGHTER?" Domon gaped.

"YOU HAVE A CHILD? YOU SLY DOG, YOU!" Recca thumped him on the back.

"For everyone's information, she's my younger sister, and what has she done?" Tokiya turned to the security guard.

"She nearly pushed that kid into the fountain." The guard replied, letting go of Tanya's ear, to point across the pavilion to a mother and her son, who looked to be Tanya's age.

"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Tanya's temper flared up. "IT WAS THE OTHER WAY AROUND! HE SHOVED ME FIRST! I NEARLY FELL IN!"

Tokiya registered the amount of shock on each of his teammates' faces. He knew why. Tanya's aura was firing up intensely.

"Tanya-"

"Tokiya, you believe me, don't you?" Her silvery eyes met his. "That boy he was pointing at started it!"

"Tanya, calm down." Tokiya pulled her onto his lap.

"I trust this will not be happening again?" The guard asked, sternly.

"No, sir. It won't." Tokiya answered.

"Good. You all have a nice day." The guard left and resumed his post at the entrance.

Tokiya looked down at Tanya who was still seething, then he turned to look at his friends, who were still gaping at him. All except Fuuko, who was staring down at the table, trying to hide a smile.

"This is going to be a long story." Kagerou broke the silence. "Why don't I treat you all to something to drink? I can tell we'll be sitting here for a while."

"So that's why you wanted to meet up at an ice cream place, despite this chilly weather." Recca said, smiling at Tanya, perched on her brother's lap.

"If you will kindly read the display menu, Sea-Monkey, I picked this place because they also serve hot drinks here." Tokiya settled Tanya on his right leg.

Kagerou chuckled as she stood up. "Don't start the story without me. I'll be right back."

She returned with a tray of steaming paper cups.

"It's hot chocolate." She said, setting the tray down after she passed around the drinks. "Now you can start talking, Tokiya."

So, Tokiya talked. He told them everything that happened from the day he received the child custody letter. Tanya too, was listening intently. He explained all of it, and the reason why he didn't know his parents were alive.

When he finished, everyone was looking grave.

"I am so sorry about your parents, Mi-Chan." Fuuko leaned forward. "It must've been hard for you when you found out."

Tokiya nodded, mustering up a faint smile, as he brushed his hand through Tanya's ponytail.

"Is that a smile?" Koganei grinned. "We haven't seen one of those on your face in the longest time. We should have Tanya around with us all the time."

"Team Hokage's newest member." Recca added.

Tokiya's smile grew wider. "She has an Ensui."

"WHAT?" everyone exclaimed.

"Show them, Tanya."

Tanya removed her Madougou from her jacket pocket and passed it to Recca.

"It's like yours, Tokiya. A longer version, and what's this groove for?" Recca ran his finger down the weapon.

"It's a double blade." Tanya explained, breaking her Ensui in two down the groove line.

"Cool!" The rest of Team Hokage leaned forward to examine it.

"She powers that with fire." Tokiya said. "And I'm telling you with complete honesty, Recca. She can be the one to give you a run for your money."

"Fire?" Recca stared at Tanya, astonished.

Tanya looked up at her brother and saw him wink. She smiled and snapped her fingers. Fire danced on her thumb.

"She-"

"She can-"

"No way!"

Tokiya smirked at them. Tanya balled her fist to put out the flame and then asked if she could be excused to go play by the fountain again. He nodded and let her slide off his lap. After she scampered off, he said, "You should all try sparring with her."

"SPARRING?" Domon sputtered. "With a pint-sized, fire version of you?"

"She's really good. I'm betting you would go down in ten minutes, Gorilla."

"NANI?" Domon made to stand up.

"Calm down, Domon-san." Kagerou admonished him with an amused look and turned to Tokiya. "It seems you two have bonded quite a lot since you've met. Making up for lost time?"

Tokiya nodded.

"It's refreshing to see you like this, Tokiya." Kagerou took a sip of her drink. "You've grown up a lot, and you're learning to open yourself up. Don't stop."

"You've been keeping yourself holed up too long. Let it all out." Yanagi added.

Tokiya felt himself blush at what they said. He knew it was the truth, and these were the only people he could talk everything and anything about with.

"Is there anything else you want to tell us?" Kagerou asked him.

"No." Tokiya answered truthfully. "Not at the moment."

"Then we should show Tanya around this mall." Kagerou suggested. "Give the little one a tour."

"I need to go to the supermarket." Tokiya replied. "Perhaps some other day?"

"No way, Mikagami-sempai!" Yanagi spoke up, surprising all of them with sudden boldness, instead of her usual shyness. She gave Tokiya a mischievous grin. "If you think we'll let you take your cute little sister away from us before we_ at least_ take her shopping, you're badly mistaken."

"Well, I-"

"Oh, come on you Eskimo!" Fuuko grinned. "I'll help you with your grocery shopping while the others bring Tanya around."

Before he could stop himself, Tokiya heard his voice say "All right."

Fuuko stood up and caught Tanya's eye. She waved for the little girl to come back over.

Tokiya took his sister's hand. "I have to go to the supermarket with Fuuko to pick up a few things for home. Everybody else will take you around the mall. We'll catch up."

"We'll take you shopping!" Ganko said, hugging the younger Mikagami in a bone-crushing grip. "And dress you up in cute little outfits!"

"We'll bring you in all the stores!" Yanagi added.

Tanya looked horrified and gave her brother an 'I-can't-believe-you're-leaving-me-with-these-people' look.

Fuuko brushed the bangs off the little girl's forehead. "Don't worry, sweetheart." She bent down and gave her a squeeze. "They're usually this crazy."

"We haven't had anyone to spoil like this since Ganko started middle-school!" Yanagi declared.

Recca tickled Tanya in the ribs making her squeal in delight and dodge aside. He chased her around their companions.

"We'll take care of her, Fridge Boy, don't worry." Domon caught Tanya as she passed by him. He hoisted her up onto his shoulders.

Tokiya exhaled exasperatedly. "For some reason, I am not very much assured."

"Snow Man!" Kaoru teased him. "Since when have we ever given you reason not to trust us?"

"You really want me to answer that?"

"It was a rhetorical question, and you know we'll take care of Tanya just fine." Kaoru crossed his arms.

"All right." Tokiya finally agreed after a few moments. "Just don't let her out of your sight."

He and Fuuko watched as the rest of their teammates laughed and headed off to the escalator. Tanya's red beanie bobbed along, being as she was still perched on Domon's shoulders.


	8. Grocery Shopping

**Chapter 8: Grocery Shopping**

"You actually eat Cocoa Pops now?" Fuuko pointed to the box Tokiya was placing into the grocery cart he was wheeling.

"Tanya asked me the same question this morning." came the reply. "And the answer is yes, I do. If I recall correctly, you didn't give me much choice back at the tournament. You threatened to skin me alive if I ate the last of the doughnuts. "

"Hey, eating hocolate cereal didn't kill you. It proves you're human." Fuuko followed him to the bread section of the supermarket.

Tokiya rolled his eyes at her and turned to pick out a loaf of bread from one of the shelves.

'_Wonder if Tanya likes wheat bread…. She seems to have a big appetite…..'_

"Hey, Tokiya? When does your semester break end?" Fuuko's voice broke into his thoughts.

"My classes resume in three weeks."

"Oh. Well, I was just wondering why any of us didn't bump into you during the past semester."

"Freshmen have fixed schedules. Once you get to sophomore year, you'll get to pick out your time slots." Tokiya began wheeling the cart away to another aisle.

"I see." Fuuko mused. She found him two aisles from the bread section, bent down to look at the selection of peanut butter. She squatted down next to him.

"How are you holding up with Tanya? She seems to be quite a handful." Fuuko chose a jar of chunky peanut butter and handed it to him. "This is a really good brand."

"Thank you. And she's not that much of a handful. As I've said earlier, you should all try sparring with her, though I have to teach her how to hide that aura of hers. It's as fiery as her temper, which I only saw today."

"She's a kid, Tokiya." Fuuko laughed as they stood up. "Did you expect her to act older than her age?"

"You should hear the way she talks most of the time." Tokiya said, softly. "You can easily forget she's only seven."

Fuuko gave him an understanding look and walked along beside him.

"So, why'd you volunteer to help me with grocery shopping? Thought your specialty was _eating _food, not shopping for the ingredients necessary to prepare them."

"Very funny, Ice Prince." Fuuko punched him in the arm so hard, he knew it would leave a bruise. "I wanted to talk to you in private."

Tokiya stopped in the middle of an aisle. "What for?"

Fuuko turned to face him. "You said you owed us an explanation, Mi-Chan, and you did explain about leaving without saying good-bye, and about Tanya, but there's one other thing I want you to explain."

Tokiya gulped uncharacteristically. "And what's that?"

"Why didn't you even try and get in touch with us again?"

Tokiya sighed. 'I guess I wasn't ready..."

"I see." Fuuko brushed her hair out of her eyes.

They walked on in silence till they came to the snack section.

"My favorite place in this enormous, air-conditioned warehouse." Fuuko grinned.

"You sure?" Tokiya wheeled the cart ahead, "The bananas are located in the fruit section."

He felt something that crunched collide with the back of his head.

"WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT FOR?" He picked up the bag of crisps Fuuko had thrown at him and turned to face her.

The expression he saw on her face made him want to laugh out loud, despite his anger a few seconds earlier. Fuuko looked rather cute when she was angry. Her expression however, was moving down more along the lines of boiling mad, which made her look more than cute.

Steam was practically gushing out of her ears as she stomped towards him. "Thanks!" She snapped, angrily. "After we get my monkey food and pay for your shopping, I'm going to get a new thick hoodie jacket when we pass by a nice boutique. If I'm going to see more of you around, the temperature's probably going to go below a sub-zero degree."

"Kirisawa-"

"Come on." Fuuko trudged down the aisle. "We'd better finish up. Yanagi's good at picking out clothes, but Ganko will probably put everything cute she finds on Tanya."

T okiya watched her retreating figure, his mind filled with the fact that he noticed her figure looked even better than before, plus her longer hair really suited her, and she didn't walk like a tomboy anymore, and the skirt she was wearing accentuated….

_'Ohhhh no. Don't even go any further than that!'_ Tokiya thought, furiously.

Fuuko was waiting for him at the end of the aisle. He hurried to catch up with her, picking up a few bags of chips on the way.

"You need anything else?" she asked, when she reached him.

"No, this is all."

She nodded and led the way to the cashier. They began to unload everything in the cart. Once or twice, Tokiya felt his fingers brush hers. His skin tingled at the contact. He hoped she wouldn't notice how fast his heart was hammering against his chest.

The cashier lady, a matronly sort of woman, gave them both a disapproving look.

"Aren't you two a little too young to be married?"

Fuuko dropped the can of corn beef she just picked up. Tokiya caught it before it hit the floor. He felt himself smile inwardly as he placed it on the counter.

He turned to the cashier and said. "We just had the ceremony at City Hall this morning. After last night, there really was no turning back."

Fuuko gaped at him for a few moments, then she bent down to the cart. Flushing deeply, she put the last of the groceries on the counter.

"That's what they all say." The cashier rang up Tokiya's purchases and the bagger boy handed him two large plastic bags.

"Thank you." Tokiya said. Fuuko took one and preceded him out of the supermarket.

"You think that was hilarious?" She turned on him when they were finally outside.

Tokiya smirked. "If you didn't like what I was saying to her, you should have spoken up. Only I don't think she would have believed you anyway."

"An ice-block pretty-boy marrying someone like me. That sounds really unbelievable. Thanks a lot for _that_ spiteful memory. Next time, I'll have to clarify to her that I'm not married to you." Fuuko retorted, shifting the plastic bag she was carrying to her other hand. "Maybe she would have approved if you were with one of your fangirls." Something beeped. Fuuko fished her cellphone out of her purse and read the text message.

"Come on. Yanagi just texted to say they're in Pretty In Pink."

Tokiya absently started to follow her. Why did it sound so wrong when she said the words _'I'm not married to you' _?


	9. Of Panda Suits and Blue Hoodies

**Chapter 9: Of Panda Suits and Blue Hoodies**

"Ohh… this place has a lot of cute things!" Ganko gushed as she looked around the shelves of the boutique. There was a huge selection of pink clothing. The other different-colored garments were a bit further in.

Tanya was between Domon and Kaoru, looking around like she just entered a Horror House. Kagerou was checking out a shelf by the entrance. Kaoru adjusted his hold on the several shopping bags he was carrying for Ganko and held out his free hand to Tanya.

"Come on, Tanya-chan." The Kougan-Anki master grinned. "They really won't stop till they think they're done."

Tanya allowed herself to take his hand and followed him to where Ganko was. Domon followed right behind them.

Recca struggled to carry several more shopping bags as he followed Yanagi around the boutique. Yanagi picked out a pink top with a cute bow on the collar.

"Tanya-chan!" She called out, as she and Recca went over to join their companions, "Try on this one." She handed her the top.

"And these!" Ganko added cheerfully as she held out a huge amount of clothing, which she piled into Tanya's arms.

Evidently, Tanya was getting used to this after the last twenty stores they had been in, for she obediently went to the fitting room to try on all the clothes they had given her.

"Wait!" Kagerou called out. "I think this one will look good on you too." She held out a pink shirt with a cupcake on it.

"O-okay." Tanya allowed Kagerou to add the shirt to the dangerously large pile in her arms. She sighed and stepped into the dressing room

_'Here we go again…' _she started to pull on the first shirt on top of the pile.

Tokiya and Fuuko had walked to Pretty In Pink in silence. By the time they entered, Fuuko strided ahead.

"Tanya's probably smothered under frilly dresses by now….. maybe I should have come with them….." She said out loud.

Tokiya was looking around, trying not to smile. This morning, Tanya told him she absolutely didn't know how to go clothes shopping and the last time she had been allowed to pick out clothes she liked, their mother ended up choosing for her still.

He reached his friends just in time to see Tanya emerge from the nearest fitting room.

"Um….. Ganko-san? Isn't this a Panda suit?"

"Ohh….you look so kawaii!" Ganko exclaimed. "You look so cute in anything we pick out for you! We'll have to get you all of this!" she began to collect all the garments they had Tanya try on.

"You look adorable, sweetie!" Fuuko came forward and hugged the little girl close.

"Hello, Fuuko-kun." Tanya said, returning the hug. "But this is a Panda suit, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is." Tokiya walked up to them, still stifling a smile.

"Oh, come on, Fridge Boy! You've got to admit this looks cute on her." Fuuko put down the plastic bag she was carrying and scooped Tanya up in her arms.

"Hold on," Recca held out a hat with panda ears. "I think this will complete the look. Right, Princess?"

"Oh, good find, Recca!" Yanagi kissed him on the cheek.

Fuuko placed the hat on Tanya's head, making her look like a Panda cub. The little girl buried her face in Fuuko's cuddle.

"Now you really seem like a Panda." Fuuko laughed. "Don't be shy. You look good."

Tanya finally looked up. She turned her gaze over to her brother to find a small smile on his face, as he looked at her. Was that tenderness in his eyes?

"See? She's making Fridge-Boy smile again!" Yanagi announced. "We are definitely getting her that Panda outfit."

"And now that I've got you here, we can pick out a few things for you too, Fuuko." Yanagi declared.

Tokiya picked up the groceries Fuuko had set down and watched in bewilderment as Yanagi and Ganko pulled Fuuko and Tanya around the store.

He was halfway to them when a jacket caught his eye. He put down the groceries he was carrying and took it down from the rack.

It was a beautiful blue jacket with a hood. As deep, cerulean-blue as…

'_It's the same color as her eyes.'_ Tokiya thought to himself.

"_After we get my monkey food and pay for your shopping, I'm going to get a new thick hoodie jacket when we pass by a nice boutique. If I'm going to see more of you around, the temperature's probably going to go below a sub-zero degree."_

"Tokiya? That's a girl's jacket." Kagerou's voice broke his train of thought.

He blushed as he turned to her. "It's not—I wasn't-"

"Well, it seemed too big for Tanya, I assumed-" Kagerou began to laugh.

"It's not for me." Tokiya assured her.

"All right then." Still chuckling, Kagerou went off to join the rest of Team Hokage.

Tokiya stared at the jacket in his hands, then at Fuuko, who was in Tanya's earlier predicament: an enormous pile of clothes in her arms, courtesy of Yanagi and Ganko.

It was her size.

He picked up the groceries with one hand and made for the counter.


	10. A Present

**Chapter 10: A Present**

It was already dark when Team Hokage made their way out of the mall.

"You don't have to pay us back for what we bought for Tanya, Mikagami-sempai!" Yanagi said, as they all walked towards the parking lot.

"Yeah!" Ganko added. "Consider them as gifts."

"Thank you!" Tanya said, a smile lighting up her face as she shifted the many shopping bags she was carrying to one hand. "These are all really nice, and I wouldn't have been able to pick them out myself." She gave each of her new friends a hug.

"Wear the Panda suit next time we all hang out." Kaoru requested, cheekily.

"Okay," Tanya agreed, grinning.

They stopped where Tokiya had parked his Ferrari.

"See you, Fridge-Boy." Domon slapped him on the back.

"Yeah. G'night, Frosty." Recca added.

They all exchanged good-bye-for-nows before parting ways. Tokiya thanked them all again for the clothes they had bought for his sister.

"Drive carefully, Ice Boy." Fuuko said. She leaned down to give Tanya a hug. "See you soon, sweetie."

"Get home safe, Fuuko-san." Tanya hugged the Fuujin-wielder back.

Fuuko gathered the shopping bags containing her own purchases from Pretty In Pink and gave the Mikagami siblings one last wave as she walked off.

Tanya started to load everything she was carrying into the back seat of her brother's car. Tokiya put down the groceries for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

"Wait here." He told his younger sister.

Tanya looked confused, but nodded. She saw her brother hurry after Fuuko, carrying a package from Pretty In Pink. She had seen him trying to hide it behind the groceries he was carrying while they were still with their friends.

'_It's probably that blue jacket I saw him looking at.'_ Tanya thought, smiling. _'And he bought it for her.'_ She crossed her fingers for luck behind her back.

"Fuuko!" Tokiya finally caught up with her.

"Mi-Chan?"

"Here." He handed her the package he was carrying.

"For me?"

He nodded. "In case the temperature goes below a sub-zero degree."

Fuuko looked surprised, but nodded. "Thank you, Mi-Chan." She gave him a smile.

"You're welcome. Get home safe." He echoed Tanya's words. He turned to go and saw his sister hastily pretend she hadn't been watching them. He smiled as she began to quickly lug the groceries over and pile them into the backseat with the shopping bags.

Fuuko walked over to where her friends were waiting. (Or looking as though they were. Tanya wasn't the only one who had seen the entire exchange. XD) Recca had promised them all a ride home in his car. She got into the back seat next and sat next to Ganko, still staring at the package from Tokiya.

Recca looked like he was about to ask about it, but Yanagi caught his eye and winked before shaking her head. With a smile, he flame ninja started up the engine, backed his car out of the parking space, and drove out onto the highway.


	11. Thank You Calls and Getting Along

**Chapter 11: Thank You Calls and Getting Along**

The morning after the Team Hokage outing, Fuuko lay in bed, staring at the package Tokiya had given her. She had been so tired by the time Recca had pulled up in front of Pine West Apartments, she hadn't been able to open it yet, choosing to put it on her dresser before changing into her pajamas and crashing down on her bed.

Come to think of it, she didn't remove her purchases from Pretty In Pink out of their packaging either. Rubbing her eyes, she rolled out of bed, put on her slippers, and trudged over to the vehemently pink packages she had placed on the chair of her dresser the night before.

She didn't buy a load of things. Just a new pair of jeans, a 'miniskirt' that Yanagi and Ganko insisted accentuated her figure nicely, and four tops of her choosing. Despite the fact that she was gifted in her upper body proportions, she had always preferred to wear conservative tops, except during the Urabutousatsujin, when she found such tops a hindrance to her fighting moves. When she had seen how many perverted men she attracted, the resolution to never wear anything revealing anymore had intensified.

The sunlight streaming through her window was a lot brighter when she finished putting all her new clothes into her closet. Finally, she sat down on her bed and put the package from Tokiya on her lap. She remembered telling him she was going to get a new jacket if she was going to be around his frosty presence. Maybe it was a jacket.

'_Well, let's see what it is.'_ Fuuko removed the tape that sealed the package.

What she saw in the bag was a confirmation of her first 'maybe.' It was a jacket.

'_A beautiful jacket.'_ Fuuko thought, putting down the bag and spreading it on her lap. It was a gorgeous cerulean blue, with warm lining on the inside and a hood.

'_Why would Tokiya spend on something this nice for me?'_

Golly, she'd better call that Ice Prince right now and say thank you. It was the sweetest present she'd gotten in a long time.

Tokiya knocked on his sister's door. "Tanya? Are you awake?"

No answer. Tokiya found the door to be open and went in, concern written all over his face. She must have been really tired for they had left the mall rather late. When they got home, she had insisted on helping him put away the groceries before going up to her room and unpacking the new clothes the Hokage Gang had bought for her. Judging from the amount of shopping bags she had taken four trips to lug up to her room, she had been awake till late.

To his surprise, he found the bed neatly made. His sister was nowhere in sight.

Now, where was she? She wasn't in the upstairs bathroom. He had passed by it when he came up to check on her. He felt himself starting to panic when a delicious smell filled his nostrils, wafting from downstairs.

Puzzled, he hurried down, tracing the aroma's source to the kitchen. To his utter disbelief, Tanya was at the stove, standing on a stool so she could reach the pan properly. She had a spatula in one hand.

"Tanya?"

"Ohayo, Neechan." She turned to him and smiled at the expression on his face. "Breakfast will be ready in a minute. You can go ahead and sit down."

"You can cook?"

His sister nodded as she transferred the two omelettes she had finished frying up onto the two plates next to her on the counter. "Sensei Megumi didn't tell you?"

"No…." Tokiya sat down, looking rather befuddled, also noticing Tanya had already set the table and had placed a carton of orange juice and two glasses at the center of it.

Tanya snapped her fingers and the fire that lit up the stove went out. She grinned at him as she brought their plates over. "I didn't turn on the gas line, don't worry. Sometimes it's handy being pyrokinetic."

Tokiya smiled as she served him an omelette. "This looks good. I really didn't know you could cook."

"I had to learn since Dad and Mom usually had to go to work early. I packed my own lunch and made myself breakfast most of the time. I was the one who would cook up dinner too when they came home all tired."

Tokiya stared at her as she spoke in between bites of her omelette. She looked back at him with an amused expression.

"In case you're wondering, no, I didn't poison that."

Tokiya's smile returned. He put a forkful of omelette into his mouth. "Delicious! Maybe you should make breakfast everyday."

"As long as you do the dishes after."

The siblings laughed and Tanya poured them both a glass of orange juice. "I was actually worried about surprising you by cooking this morning." She admitted. "I was so accident prone back in Hokkaido, I usually ended up cleaning a mess before running to catch the bus for school. Sensei Megumi said I would grow out of it."

"You will." Tokiya assured her after swallowing.

They continued conversing over their breakfast, with Tanya telling her brother about the 'Retail Shockwave' she had undergone yesterday. How he laughed when she told him about Yanagi, Kagerou, and Ganko shooing Recca, Domon, and Kaoru outside a store that sold children's underwear and had proceeded to make Tanya try on different kinds. She had also ended up promising to let them and Fuuko be the ones to accompany her when it was time to go shopping for her first bra.

Tokiya choked on his orange juice when he heard this, mentally reminding himself to thank the girls. It would certainly be awkward for him to bring his little sister underwear shopping, never mind actually _entering_ a store entailed for that purpose….

"You okay, Tokiya?" Tanya asked, when he was silent for a while.

"Yes." Tokiya managed to say. They had both finished eating. "I'll do the dishes. You can watch TV if you like."

Tanya grinned and stood up from her seat. "Great! Saturday Morning Cartoons Marathon!"

Tokiya shook his head amusedly as she bounced out of the kitchen. As he brought their plates over to the sink, he heard the TV click on and the sound of an opening song to an Animè show.

He had finished storing the dishes back in a cupboard when he heard the phone ring. He came out of the kitchen and met Tanya's questioning look.

"I'll get it." He reached for the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Mi-Chan. It's me." Fuuko's voice sounded out.

"Ohayo, Monkey. You're awake earlier than I can ever remember. Don't you usually get up past noon on Saturdays? "

"Geez! I call you up to say thank you and this is what I get?"

"Well, I seem to be getting a lot of surprises today. Hearing that the words 'thank you' are actually in your vocabulary is one, and the other is that Tanya cooked breakfast this morning."

"I've KNOWN how to say 'thank you' since I was three, Fridge-Boy! And I said 'thank you' to you last night too! And whoa…. Tanya can already cook?"

"Apparently, yes. You should come over and try her omelettes one of these days."

"She can cook _omelettes?_"

"Yes."

"Wow! I'm loving that little girl even more!"

Tokiya was glad she couldn't see his smile after hearing the sound of her voice over the phone. That was another surprise for the list.

"You said something about calling to say thank you?"

"Oh, yeah! I just opened the package you gave me last night. I absolutely love the jacket, Mi-Chan! Thank you times a million!"

"You're welcome. And I didn't know you could multiply."

"Quit insulting my intelligence for ten seconds and tell me why you splurged on something like this for me."

"I just….. felt like getting it for you. It matches your-" Tokiya managed to stop himself from finishing that sentence.

"It matches my what, Mi-Chan?"

Tokiya took a deep breath before saying, "Your eyes."

"Oh….. Well, it was really sweet of you, Popsicle Boy. I appreciate it. Are you sure you want me to have it?"

"Yes, Monkey. That's why I gave it to you."

"Eskimo!" Fuuko teased.

"Primate!" Tokiya retorted. He turned to look at his sister, who seemed to be trying very hard to look engrossed in her TV show.

"Wanna talk to Tanya?"

"Sure!"

"Hold on a moment." Tokiya held out the receiver. "Here, sweetheart. Fuuko wants to talk to you."

Tanya looked up from watching her favorite character issue flames out of a metal fan as a Chinese character glowed red on his wrist, and came over.

"Ohayo, Fuuko-san!"

"Hey Strawberry Pie! I heard you can cook omelettes."

Tanya laughed. "Yep."

"My only breakfast specialty is pancakes, and I end up making them too big. We should have breakfast together so I can see you cook for myself and pick up tips."

"Okay. I'm sure my brother wouldn't object to have you here for breakfast one time." Tanya grinned at her brother who raised an eyebrow.

"He did invite me to come over."

"Okay." Tanya's grin widened. "I'm not objecting to making a nice breakfast for two. I'll be content to enjoy a bowl of Cocoa Pops while I watch TV on the couch so you two can be alone."

On the other end of the line, Fuuko laughed before she could stop herself. She caught sight of her reflection in the small mirror hung on the nearest wall and found she was blushing. She heard sounds of scuffling back on Tokiya and Tanya's end.

"Did he give you the really nice-looking blue jacket from Pretty In Pink?" Tanya managed to ask, dodging aside as her brother tried to grab the receiver. 'I saw him looking at it while we were in that store."

"Yeah. He did." Fuuko replied, softly. She fingered the sleeve of the blue hoodie she was wearing. She had tried it on before calling.

"Great!" Tanya said. There was a thumping _shuff _sound from their end, which sounded like a lot of papers falling to the floor. "I'm glad you like what he picked out-"

There was another, more solid sounding thump and then-

"Hey, it's me again." Came Tokiya's voice.

"Oh come on, Aniki! I wasn't done talking to her yet!" Tanya protested in the background.

"Everything okay?" Fuuko asked with a snigger.

"Yeah…. OW!…. everything's fine…" Tokiya replied from his end, trying to block Tanya from getting past him to go into his room, where she knew there was another phone.

"You should see him, Fuuko-san!" Tanya called out loudly so Fuuko could hear. "He's all red in the face-"

"Could you hold on for a few minutes, Fuuko?" Tokiya asked.

"S-sure…."

She heard quite a ruckus over at the other end of the line.

**(WHACK!) **

"OW!"

**(louder WHACK!)**

"OWW!"

**(BONK!)**

"HEY!"

**(KA-SHAK!)**

"WHY YOU-"

**(THUNK!)**

"YOU JUST HIT ME WITH A PHONE BOOK! I WAS CONSIDERATE ENOUGH TO USE A CUSHION!"

"LET GO!"

**(LOUDER THUMPS)**

"GIVE ME THE PHONE BACK!"

"TRY AND TAKE IT!"

"YOU ASKED FOR IT, YOU PINT-SIZED SPITFIRE!"

"GET OFF ME! YOU WEIGH MORE THAN A TON!"

Tokiya managed to grab the cordless phone back from his sister and sat on her back, pinning her to the floor.

"Fuuko? Still there?" He asked, ignoring Tanya's orders for him to get off.

"Yeah. Sounds like you two are still getting along well."

"Oh, definitely." Tokiya grinned sarcastically.

"So, Thanks again for the jacket, and I hope we all get to hang out more before semester break is over."

"You're welcome. Just call if there are any more arranged get-togethers with the rest. I might actually _want_ to come and bring Tanya with me."

"Very funny, Icehead. Ja ne!"

"Bye."

He heard the click signifying she had hung up and stood from sitting on his sister.

Tanya looked up and noticed he was still smiling. A mischievous grin lit up her face. Her silver eyes watched him put the receiver in its cradle.

'_I knew it! He likes her!' _She got up and grabbed a cushion to get her brother back from nearly crushing her spine. _'And he just doesn't want to admit it yet!'_

She jumped up and whacked him on the shoulder.

She'd let him work it out for himself.

For now.

_'Hopefully he'll swallow his big head and tell her, or I might have to beat him up with is own Ensui.' _

She threw another well-aimed pillow at her brother as he stalked over with a cushion of his own, clearly intending to continue their 'Hit You With Whatever I Can Get My Hands On' fight.

He dodged aside at the last second and threw the cushion he was holding at her, realizing that having a little sister was one of the most enjoyable things in the world.


	12. Music For the Soul

**Chapter 12: Music For The Soul**

She had eaten breakfast after calling up the Mikagami residence. Now, Fuuko stared at the pile of Physics and Algebra she had to do over semester break. It was bad enough that she put it off to begin with, but the finding of Tokiya after a long, long while and learning he had a little sister… well, that was enough to get her off her academic track.

As if she wanted to be on the academic track in the first place...

Needless to say, it took a week's worth of studying for the Hokage team when they got back from the UBS. Actually, it took Mr. Nerdy Genius, Tokiya Mikagami a week, and Recca, Domon, Yanagi, and herself two weeks to get back on their feet at school.

They weren't surprised to hear Tokiya had graduated Valedictorian of the Senior Class during that year. Then he disappeared without even a good-bye and-

'_Why am I even thinking about that now?' _Fuuko groaned to herself. She sat down and pulled her College Algebra book towards her. She was better in Math than in Science. That was what her teachers told her back in high school. She was a natural in solving mathematical problems when she wasn't beating up bullies with Recca and Domon. The professors highly advised her to be a Math major.

_ 'That stupid Ice Prince won't even_ _believe I'm any good at schoolwork, and boy, will he be surprised to find out I'm studying to be an Algebra Teacher!'_

It was strange really, the way her thoughts would revert to him during her unguarded moments. Oh well. Best start on the homework.

She began on her first sheet, working through it with an ease that surprised even herself. It took her less than two hours to finish her Math homework, but by the time she was halfway through her Physics assignment, she was beginning to get a headache.

The many variables for Torque problems swam before her eyes when she was done. It had been a gruesome battle, involving many crumpled up pieces of scratch paper in the trashcan under her desk. Fuuko brushed her now long hair out of her face and held her bangs back with one hand. Maybe Physics would kill her more painfully than anyone in the UBS ever could.

She reached for her Ipod, put on her earphones and pressed play. The soothing sound of Toploader soon got her to ease up.

The printer beeped as Tokiya finally pressed the Print shortcut keys on his computer. He had finally finished his last piece of semester break homework: a paper on the novel _Hamlet_. The Literature professor was a terror beyond words. He had given back his students' last drafts before semester break, pronouncing them immaturely written for an advanced sophomore class. Even Tokiya's draft had been frowned on. A thing he was not used to.

Feeling dizzy, he rubbed his eyes and gently touched a small bump on his head: a product of his Sibling Rivalry match with Tanya that morning. At least it wasn't a permanent injury. That pint-sized spitfire didn't know the power of her own strength when she clobbered him on the head with a book she found on the coffee table (_Quantum Science Theories) _to get him back for hitting her with the phone book.

He minimized a window on his computer screen and let another pop up. It was his Facebook page. Tanya had been absolutely adamant that he start an account after learning he didn't have one. She had shown him her own Facebook page and pointed out that it wasn't a crime to stay connected with his friends through the World Wide Web.

He already had Tanya on his _Family _list of FB relations. He clicked an icon to check his list of friend invitations. The display made him smile. The whole Hokage team added him up. Even Shigeo and Kagerou.

He clicked 'Accept' on each of his teammates' invitations and started scrolling through their pages, laughing to himself at their kooky photos until his computer clock caught his eye.

_ Oh no no no no! _It was past two p.m. and he had completely forgotten to make lunch for himself and Tanya.

'_Darn it! Darn it! Darn it!' _he stood up and hurried out of his room, knowing he could leave the printer to carry on by itself.

He found Tanya on the couch, reading one of her new schoolbooks, the others next to her in a pile. They had been delivered three days after Megumi Kyoza had visited Tokiya, along with Tanya's complete registration paperwork.

"Hey," Tanya said, looking up. "You hungry? I figured you were too absorbed in that paper of yours to come out and eat lunch with me so I made some sandwiches around noon and ate ahead." She got up and preceded him into the kitchen.

"I made extra ones and I would've brought them to you, but I remembered you telling me I can't eat in my room, so I assumed you don't eat in yours either. I didn't want to disturb you while you were doing homework."

Tokiya watched her take a microwavable plate out of the dish cupboard and remove the extra sandwiches from the refrigerator.

"One's chicken, and the other one's ham and cheese." He looked up at him questioningly, her expression obviously asking him which one he wanted.

Tokiya felt his insides fill with warmth. This darker-haired, Mifuyu-miniature was younger than him by twelve years and she was the one taking care of him, not the other way around. He reached over and hugged her, holding breakables as she was.

"Was that paper of yours about something sappy?" Tanya sounded concerned, balancing the plates on one hand and returning her brother's embrace with her free arm.

He laughed and took the dishes from her. "Some parts were. And Tanya?"

"Yeah?"

"You can disturb me anytime you want, whether I'm doing homework or not. I am your brother after all. I'll be sure to tell you when I need to be alone."

"Alright." She gave him a grin. "So which sandwich do you want me to heat up for you?"

"I'll eat them both. And I'll be the one to cook dinner tonight. That paper was the last of my homework."

His sister nodded and excused herself to go back to the living room.

Tokiya smiled as he heated his sandwiches, amazed at how much she knew how to do. She had seen the keyboard that Tokiya kept in the living room for decorational purposes, having given up playing the piano when he started college. To his surprise, she told him their father had taught her how to play. He had requested her to play him a couple of songs she knew and she agreed.

One of them was the _Moonlight Sonata_, for ketchup's sake! And he had only been able to master that piece when he was eleven!

"Neesan?" she called from the living room.

"Yes?"

"You mind if I practice on the keyboard? I didn't want to risk playing while you were doing your homework. I might have driven you insane."

"Go ahead. Let me finish eating and maybe we can play a few duets."

"Okay."

He removed the plate of sandwiches from the microwave and began to eat, listening to her attempts at playing a Minuet. She did hit a few sour notes, but it was easy to tell she had talent. He heard her muttering to herself about 'absurd sixteenth note combinations' and 'weird accidentals.'

She was still practicing the Minuet when her brother came out of the kitchen after his very late lunch. He sat down next to her.

"Know how to play Blue Moon?" he asked, keying the first notes.

"I like that song!" Tanya replied, cheerfully. "It was the first one I learned. Let's play the duet version!"

She scooted down the long stool they were both sitting on and waited for her brother to start.

Tokiya began with the intro and then the descant. Tanya joined him with the melody.

He felt his earlier stress over his schoolwork dissolve as he and his sister played the whole song.


	13. The Invitation

**Chapter 13: The Invitation**

"Okay honey, focus." Tokiya knelt in front of his sister. It was nearing sunset, and the two Mikagami siblings were in the backyard of their house.

Tanya closed her eyes and willed her energy print to go down a notch... then another. After their piano practice, her brother had suggested that they stretch their legs a bit. He took the opportunity to teach her about hiding her energy as well.

"That's it." Tokiya coached. "You don't have to do it so fast... easy does it..."

The sound of a branch cracking caused them both to look up, ruining Tanya's concentration. Fiery energy blasted outward, knocking Tokiya flat.

"Ooops! I'm sorry!" Tanya threw herself facedown onto the ground next to her brother. "UGH! This is hopeless!"

Tokiya brushed himself off and ruffled his sister's hair. "It's okay. Don't be so hard on yourself."

"Hmpf!" Tanya mumbled, still facedown.

"Oh, so it's gonna be like that?" Tokiya tackled her and started to tickle.

"HEY! DON'T!" Tanya squealed and attempted to wriggle out of his arms. "No fair!"

Tokiya tickled his little sister till her laughter turned into tears of mirth.

"Better now?" He asked.

Tanya nodded. "Much." she stood up. "I'll try it again."

They both stood up and brushed themselves off. Tanya closed her eyes and slowly performed the energy-hiding technique, with her brow furrowing deeper everytime her energy print would simmer down a level.

Minutes later, she felt her brother's hand on her shoulder.

"You did it."

Her eyes flashed open. "I did? I DID!" Tanya somersaulted around the backyard.

"Did you see that, Neesan? I did it!"

Tokiya clapped. "I'm really proud of you." He smiled and watched her cartwheel in around in a victory circle.

"Now you'll just have to learn to hold it down that way till you need to release it."

Tanya stopped, mid-cartwheel. She remained in a handstand position and tilted her head to look at her brother. "Oh?"

"Yeah." Tokiya said. "I don't want anyone with the ability to sense energy prints to mark you. They could be dangerous." _'And I can't lose another sibling. I won't!'_ he added as an afterthought.

Tanya flipped back right side up. "Alright."

Tokiya put his arm around her. "Come on. Let's go back inside. I'm cooking."

Tanya clasped his hand. "You sure? You look tired."

"I'm fine."

Tanya sat down at the kitchen table, head in her arms, waiting for her brother to serve dinner. She was getting sleepy a little too early. After that Sibling Rivalry match,practicing on the keyboard with her brother, plus that new energy-shielding technique she just learned, her limbs and fingers were a bit sore.

"You all right?" she heard her brother's voice next to her. Man, he was so silent, she didn't even hear him walk over. She felt him stroke her hair.

"I'm okay. Just a bit sleepy. Who knew that hiding your energy would feel like you''re carrying ten-pound weights?"

"That's normal. Once you get used to the technique, it won't feel heavy anymore." Tokiya glanced over at the oven, watching the timer countdown. "Dinner will be ready in a few minutes. You can go sleep right after.

"It's too early!" Tanya pouted, looking up. There was a loud beep from the oven.

"Don't force yourself to stay awake." Tokiya said, putting on a large mitt and opening the oven. "And by the way, your bedtime is 9:00 on schooldays."

"9:00?" Tanya's expression was incredulous. "I'm not four years old!"

"I know you're not. You're already seven, which means you'll need a lot of sleep so you won't be stunted in growth."

"Have you been reading child care books since you learned I was coming to live with you? Where did you find that out?"

"No," Tokiya laughed as he removed a pan from the oven. "I learned that fact from one of my lessons when I was in primary school."

"Wow. Recca wasn't kidding yesterday when he told me you're a total nerd." His sister teased.

"I'd rather be a nerd than a monkey." Tokiya placed the contents of the pan onto a serving platter and walked back to the table.

"I'm not saying it's a bad thing." Tanya lifted up her nose to sniff dinner.

"You seem to be a nerd yourself." Tokiya grinned, setting down the platter. "The only other person I know who reads schoolbooks as soon as they're issued out is me."

"Guilty."Tanya grinned and punched him lightly on the arm. "Smells good. Lasagna?"

"Yes. One of my specialties. You have a really good nose." Tokiya replied, spooning out a large slice for her.

He smiled when he saw the expression on her face when she took her first bite.

"Mmmm….Heavenly!"

"Glad you think so." Tokiya started on his own portion of Lasagna. He had just swallowed his first bite when-

"BRRRIIIIIING!"

Tokiya put down his fork and went to the living room. He picked up the cordless phone and went back into the kitchen.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Fridge-Boy. I asked Fuuko for your number."

"Oh it's you, Sea Monkey." Tokiya drawled, after hearing Recca's tone on the other end of the line.

"Yeah. How's Tanya?"

"She's fine. We're having dinner."

"Whoa. Sorry to disturb you."

"You don't sound sorry." Tokiya sat back down at the table.

"Do you ever run out of smart remarks?" Recca asked.

"You and the rest of the Monkey Squad ran my supply dry when we were still in high school. Maybe all this time we've spent away from each other gave me a chance to restock on some new ones."

Recca laughed. "You're still an Icicle. Well, the reason I'm calling is that Kurei's inviting the whole Hokage Team to this hot spring resort he owns for the rest of our semester break. He says to bring swimwear since there's also a pool. It turns out he and Neon are getting married and something about an engagement party that Neon's sisters… sorry I forgot their names-"

"Miki and Aki."

"Yeah, them." Recca finally remembered. "Knew you had the hots for one of them. Question is, which one?"

"I do not 'have the hots' for either of them, Hanabishi, and can you please cut to the chase?"

"Fine. They're inviting all of us to this engagement party thing. They said to bring Tanya since they'd like to meet her."

"As if I'd leave her behind on her own. And you-"

"I told them about Tanya. Not the entire story though, I'm leaving that up to you. I didn't tell them she has an Ensui either, if that's what you're worried about."

"All right." Tokiya let out a relieved breath. "When do we leave for the resort and how do we get there?"

"Monday. And hold on. You're agreeing to come? I thought I was gonna have to get Fuuko to barge into your place and make you go."

"Ha ha." Tokiya snapped, though the mere mention of Fuuko's name sent a warm tingle through him. "As I asked, how are we getting there?"

"Kurei said he'd send a van to come pick us up, so you won't have to risk your prized Ferrari. Dad and I offered to be the ones to drive so they don't have to get someone to do it."

"Okay. Well, I suppose me and my sister can go."

"Great! Well, tell Tanya I said hi, and see you Monday."

"Bye."

Tokiya clicked the 'End Call' button and put the phone on the table.

"What's up?" Tanya asked, maneuvering a second slice of Lasagna onto her plate.

Her brother nodded. "Recca says to say hi."

Tanya grinned as she spooned some more of the baked pasta into her mouth. "Why did he call?"

"An invitation to go to a hot spring."

"Cool!" Tanya nearly spat out her mouthful of food.

"Don't talk with your mouth full." Tokiya admonished.

Tanya swallowed before asking, "Who's inviting us?"

"Apparently, our ex-opponents."

"_The Uruha-?_"

"How did you-"

"Sensei Megumi told me about them." Tanya answered, fork paused in mid-air pre her recent exclamation.

Tokiya picked up his fork and resumed eating. "Recca said they want me to bring you since they want to meet you."

"Does that mean we're going?" Tanya asked excitedly.

"So help me, yes, we are." Tokiya replied, dropping his head onto his free hand for effect. His sister laughed.

"I've never been to a hot spring." Tanya mused, as she chewed another bite. "Is it similar to a spa?"

"Something like that."

Tanya nodded thoughtfully.

Suddenly, Tokiya looked at her. "Do you have a swimsuit?"

Tanya looked at him oddly before answering, "Yes." He let out another sigh of relief and continued eating. Whew. Lucky. If she didn't have one, he didn't know exactly how he was going to help her shop. He was going to have to see if it was conservative enough though. The way swimsuit fashions were going these days, even the kiddie ones were leaning toward the skimpy side.

"I thought it was like a spa?" Tanya said, breaking into his thoughts. "I didn't know you have to wear swimsuits if you're going to take a dip in a hot spring-"

"No, no." Tokiya managed to smile. "They also have a pool."

"YES!" Tanya punched the air. "I haven't gone swimming in the LONGEST time."

"Being that you're pyrokinetic, I thought you'd be afraid of the water." Tokiya smirked. "Aren't you afraid you'd go up in a puff of smoke?"

"Hardi-har-har, Neesan." Tanya leaned over to punch him again before scooping her last forkful into her mouth.

"We'll be leaving Monday, so you'd best get packed tomorrow. They'll be picking us up."

"Okay." Tanya began scooping a third slice of Lasagna onto her plate.

"And show me your swimsuit. I have to decide if I'll let you wear it." Tokiya said.

His sister only raised an eyebrow in imitation of his trademark expression.

"Nice." Tokiya said approvingly. It was after dinner, and Tanya had brought out her swimsuit from her closet and put it on. The top was fine, and the bottom part was like shorts.

"You approve?" she asked, good-humoredly.

"For now, yes. But promise me you'll bring a t-shirt when we you go swimming and wear it when I say so."

"I promise." Tanya said, before shooing him out of her room so she could change into her pajamas.


	14. Road Trip

**Chapter 14: Road Trip**

"Do you have everything you need?" Tokiya asked, setting down his blue duffel bag next to his sister's red one. It was Monday, and Recca had called to say that they would be picking him and Tanya up at around ten.

"That's the forty-seventh time you've asked that. Yes, I do have everything." Tanya grinned at him. She put her knapsack next to their duffels.

"You've been counting?" Tokiya ruffled her hair playfully and glanced at his watch. Five minutes to ten. Any minute now. He knew Recca wasn't dependable on time, but his mother was. Kagerou had probably dragged him painfully out of bed this morning.

Tanya pulled out an elastic band from her pocket and combed her hair up into a ponytail, much like her brother's. She turned to face him and copied his stance, crossing her arms for effect.

"Very funny." Tokiya reached over to tickle her as they went outside their house. They set their bags down on the driveway. Tanya sat down on the curb as they waited.

"This is my first vacation, you know." She looked up at him. "I never really got to accompany our parents when they would go for a holiday. It was always training with my Sensei every summer vacation. The closest thing I got to spending some time with them was a weekend when I was five. They took me to a carnival."

He watched as a wistful look overtook her face. He sat down next to her and pulled her close.

"Neesan?"

"Hmm?"

"Promise you and I will spend time together whenever we can? I've lived with our parents for seven years and I feel like I barely got to know them. I only have photos and my baby book. I don't even remember talking to them much."

"I'm sure all that time you spend away from them hurt them so much too, but I guess they knew all that training would help protect you in the future. That's how much they love you." Tokiya gripped her tighter. "And I promise we'll spend a LOT of time together."

"Thank you." He felt her hug him back.

A van suddenly turned down the corner and onto their street. Tokiya saw a familiar head of spiky raven hair stick out the passenger window.

"Hey!" Recca called as they pulled up. "You guys are the last ones. Hop in! This van's huge, so it won't be much of a squeeze."

"You sure about that?" Tokiya nodded toward the trunk of the van. It was crammed with an assortment of backpacks, duffel bags, coolers and baskets.

"I said it won't be _much_ of a squeeze." Recca grinned. "You two get in. I got these." He got out of the front seat and heaved Tokiya and Tanya's duffel bags into the trunk.

"Ouch!"

"Sorry Fuuko!"

Fuuko rubbed her head as the impact of the two duffel bags Recca tossed into the back caused a small Caboodle kit to fall forward and hit the back of her head.

"Ganko, did you really have to bring all that make-up?" She nudged her sister, who was sitting with Kaoru in the seat in front of her.

"_Yes_." Ganko said, firmly.

The Mikagami siblings climbed into the van, greeting everyone. Tokiya saw (and a tingle raced down his spine) that the two unoccupied seats were the ones next to Fuuko.

The rest of the people in the van seemed to notice too. Or rather, _they_ had been the ones to plan it out….

Kagerou gave Yanagi a wink as she saw Tokiya swallow and take the seat next to Fuuko. Tanya sat down next to him.

"Hey, Mi-Chan. Hi Tanya." The purple-haired beauty smiled up at them. "Glad you decided to come."

"I was under the impression you were going to barge into my home and make us go if I didn't accept the invite." He quoted Recca's sentiment over the phone.

"Wha- who-?" Fuuko's eyes widened.

Recca started to whistle loudly from the front seat.

"RECCAAAAAAA!" Fuuko looked around her for something to throw at him.

Tanya let out a silvery laugh. "But would you really have done that if Neesan decided that we wouldn't go?"

"Maybe." Fuuko turned to the little girl and grinned. "For all his famous intelligence, your brother doesn't seem to know he needs a vacation or an outing once in a while."

"Being dragged off to a hot spring resort by a monkey doesn't sound like a vacation or an outing." Tokiya said, snidely.

Fuuko whacked him on the side of the head. "Haha, Ice Boy."

Shigeo had already driven out onto the highway. The slow traffic made him grimace.

"We're in for a _looooong_ trip, everybody."

Domon looked nonplussed as he opened a can of Pringles. "It's not so bad. Let's all do a sing-along! One hundred bottles of beer on the wall, one hundred bottles of beeeeeeer….. Everybody!"

There was a collective groan from everyone in the van as Domon continued to sing while passing around snacks.

It was fortunate that Domon had stopped at "fifty-one bottles of beer on the wall" as he had fallen into a slumber. His loud snores prevented anyone else from falling asleep, except for Tanya, whose head was nestled on Tokiya's lap.

He sat quietly, stroking his sister's hair and observing everyone else in the van. It was good to be around his teammates again, watching them in this state…..

Well, he might as well take advantage of the opportunity seeing them this quiet. (except for Domon, obviously.)

Recca had taken over driving after the temper-raising traffic on the highway. Now they were rolling along a country road, passing into a small town. He kept on winking at his Hime in the rearview mirror, which Yanagi would respond to with one of the charming smiles she reserved only for Recca. Kagerou seemed to be deep in thought as she sat, staring at her lap.

Shigeo was cranking up the radio, trying to drown out Domon's snores. Kaoru and Ganko were deep in whispered conversation, or rather deep, _intimate_ conversation, since every now and then, Ganko would blush and playfully swat Kaoru's hand.

And Fuuko…..

Well, Tokiya didn't know what to think as he sat next to her. She had been as silent as him for a while. She had turned up the air-conditioning a while ago, and now, she was staring out the window. She lifted a hand to rub her eyes and scowled at Domon who nearly kicked Kagerou as he continued to snore away.

"Tired?" Tokiya asked aloud.

She nodded. "I stayed up late helping Ganko pack practically half her closet." She nodded to the pile of baggage behind them. "It's all in the pink fluffy, five-piece luggage set Mom gave her for her birthday."

Tokiya reached over and pulled her head down onto his shoulder. "Sleep."

Fuuko looked up at him, surprised. "Y-you sure you don't mind?"

"Not at all." He replied. He adjusted Tanya's position so both girls could sleep comfortably on him.

"Thanks, Mi-Chan." Fuuko smiled as she closed her eyes. "You can rest on me when we drive back."

Tokiya smiled at the thought.

Yanagi turned to Domon, who had just woken up, and placed a finger to her lips. Everybody else either twisted their heads or leaned forward to look at her. (Recca settled for watching through the rearview mirror.) She pointed to the very back seat, where the Mikagami siblings and Fuuko were sitting.

They all smiled widely as Yanagi took a camera from her purse and took a picture of the sweet scene:

Fuuko's head rested on Tokiya's shoulder and his head was resting on hers. Tanya was curled up, her head on her brother's lap.

All three were sound asleep.

"They look like a family." Kaoru whispered. Ganko giggled softly in agreement.

"Get that shot developed, Hime." Recca grinned, taking a right as they passed an intersection. "You never know when it'll come in handy….."

The Hokage Gang stopped for lunch at a restaurant in one of the small towns on the way. Neon had sent along a group coupon for a free buffet with the driver who had brought the van to the Hanabishi residence that morning.

When they got inside the restaurant, Domon, Recca, and Fuuko, pulling Tanya along, immediately got in line after Kagerou had handed the coupon to the mait're d.

"Me first!" Recca elbowed Fuuko out of the way. "Driving works up an appetite!"

"Tough luck!" Fuuko grabbed two plates and two sets of silverware and ran ahead, clutching Tanya's hand.

Domon smiled and shook his head and chose to get drinks first . He picked up a water goblet and a glass then followed Yanagi and Ganko to the appetizers.

Tokiya got in line behind Kaoru, who was scooping pieces of chicken fillet onto his plate. He passed Tokiya the serving spoon and moved down the line to the next delectable dish.

Tokiya looked over at Fuuko and Tanya as he placed a couple of slices of chicken onto his plate. His sister was laughing as Recca made jokes about the food garnishings, even picking up the large piece of swan-shaped vegetable that decorated one of the pasta selections and pretended to chase Tanya with it.

Fuuko laughed along with the two and Tokiya couldn't help but smile at the way she scooped out servings for Tanya first before getting some for herself.

"Hey, Tokiya?" Kaoru's voice interrupted his thoughts. "That's a lot of sauce you're putting there…"

Tokiya snapped his head back down to his plate and saw that he had practically drowned his chicken fillet in gravy. He mustered up a smile.

"I …like it with a lot of sauce."

"Uh huh….." Kaoru glanced at him, then at Fuuko and gave him a meaningful grin. He went off to join Ganko and Yanagi.

Tokiya added some more chicken fillet to his plate to sop up the gravy and then walked over to the pasta section. He came up behind his sister and pointed to her full plate.

"Will you be able to finish all that, or should I just wait for your leftovers?"

"I'll eat it all." Tanya assured him. She stared at his plate. "That's a lot of chicken. May I just share with you?"

"Of course."

"Okay." Tanya turned to Fuuko and Recca. "I'll go get a drink now."

"Sure, honey." Fuuko patted the little girl's head and Recca put back the swan-vegetable they had been playing with.

Tokiya started to follow her when Fuuko suddenly reached out with her fork and picked out a piece of chicken fillet from his plate.

"Mmmm!" Where'd you get this, Mi-Chan?"

"Over there, on the left table, Monkey. May I remind you that you have your own plate to eat from." Tokiya replied, resisting the urge to feed her another forkful himself.

Fuuko just grinned and raced Recca to the said buffet table.

Tokiya selected a couple of pastas and got himself a glass of water before going over to the long table Kagerou and Shigeo had been saving on the restaurant's balcony area. The two adults stood up to get in line for their food when he sat down.

Tanya came over, balancing a small bowl of soup on her plate and holding a glass of juice. She sat down next to her brother.

"Itadakimasu!" She grinned, before starting on her soup. Her full plate attested to her big appetite.

Tokiya started to eat too, Fuuko set her plate down on his other side. She scooped a forkful of pasta into her mouth.

"The gravy boat was nearly empty. Recca almost didn't leave me any."

Tokiya felt himself flush as he stared down at his plate, which was half flooded with the said sauce.

Fuuko ate up some of her chicken fillet next. "Hmm… it tasted better from your plate, Mi-chan."

Before Tokiya knew what he was doing, he had speared some of his fillet and held up his fork to her lips.

"Here."

Fuuko stared at him for a moment, but then obediently opened her mouth and allowed him to feed her. She smiled after swallowing.

"Oh, here they are." Recca suddenly appeared in front of them, Yanagi behind him. He pulled out his Hime's chair for her and sat down next to her. Ganko took the seat on Fuuko's other side.

Tokiya put down the next forkful he was about to feed Fuuko, and they both hurriedly returned to eating from their own plates.

"Both of you slow down, your food won't run away. And it's a buffet. You can go back as many times as you want." Kaoru sniggered.

It was apparent that they had seen what happened. Tanya was trying her best not to smile widely along with the rest as her brother swallowed his mouthful of food and passed some of the chicken from his plate onto an empty portion of her plate. Fuuko took a long drink from her water goblet hoping it would help stop the blush rising in her cheeks.

Domon came back with _three_ full plates and a large glass of water and another one of juice. Despite the fact he had eaten half the snacks during the drive, he was still famished.

"Very nice of Neon to treat us to a lunch here." Kagerou commented over Domon's loud chewing, when she and Shigeo returned from the buffet line and sat down.

"The view is nice too." Shigeo ate up a spoonful of rice before staring out at the mountain scenery. He turned to his son. "Well, you got this far without us getting into any trouble on the road. I suppose I can drive the rest of the way to the hot spring resort."

Recca nodded, shoveling more pasta into his mouth. Yanagi stopped eating her salad long enough to hand him a napkin.

"Thanks, Hime."

All of them just had to have second helpings of the homemade ice cream from the dessert choices before leaving. Even Domon admitted to being full.

"Somebody roll me back outside." Tanya rubbed her stomach as they got up to go. Tokiya laughed and scooped her up. She leaned against him. "I feel like a puffed shrimp, Neesan."

"Come on, you all." Shigeo called cheerfully over his shoulder. "We still have quite a ways to go."

Team Hokage piled back into the van and they set off once more.


	15. Bonding

**Chapter 15: Bonding**

The sun was low in the sky by the time our favorite Hokage Gang reached the hot spring resort. Shigeo pulled up at the entrance and everyone scrambled out and began pulling out their belongings from the trunk.

There was a cry of delight from the entrance of the white building, and an attractive woman hurried towards them.

"We're so glad you all could come!" she said, happily. "It's great to see you!"

"Hello, Miki-San!" Yanagi stepped up to greet one of their former opponents.

Miki gave Yanagi a hug and began to do the same to everybody else, talking excitedly.

"You guys will also be staying here at the hotel, like we are. Kurei specifically reserved two suites for you. So I guess one suite will be for the boys and the girls can stay at another, unless you all prefer otherwise-"

"Oh, that arrangement is fine, Miki." Kagerou gave the boys a stern smile.

"Darn." Recca feigned disappointment. Yanagi laughed.

Miki laughed too and resumed her hug-a-thon. She reached Fuuko and practically squeezed the air out of her. "Good to see you, Fuuko-san!"

"You ….too, …Miki…." Fuuko managed to gasp. She smiled teasingly at Tokiya when it was his turn for a hug.

"And Mikagami-kun! Boy, we haven't heard from you in _ages_! I'm glad Recca got a hold of you!" Miki tossed her pink hair over her shoulder and saw a small figure hiding behind Tokiya.

"Is this Tanya?" she asked.

"Oh-" Tokiya seemed to have frozen after being hugged by a hot woman wearing a tube top. "Yes. This is my sister, Tanya."

"You owe us all the whole story at the engagement party." Miki told him, holding out a hand to Tanya, trying to coax her out from behind her brother. "Hi, sweetie. I'm Miki."

"Hello." Tanya came out from behind Tokiya and shook Miki's hand. "Nice to meet you."

"Ohhhh…. She's a sugar cube, Tokiya-kun!" Miki gushed. "I think I'll go tell Neon we found a flower girl for the wedding! See you all later!" she excused herself and ran back inside.

"F-flower girl?" Tanya sputtered, watching Miki's retreating back.

"It doesn't seem like such a bad idea, Tanya-chan." Kagerou said, reassuringly. "Of course, your brother has to approve first."

"I guess this means we're all invited to the wedding." Tokiya grinned and placed a hand on Tanya's shoulder. "It'll be nice seeing you as a flower girl, with the lacy dress and the basket of petals and fancy shoes-"

"STOP!" Tanya covered her ears. "Lace makes me itch like nuts! And I can't walk that much in dress shoes! I'll trip a million times! Plus, I've never been a flower girl before!"

Everyone laughed at her outburst. The expression on her face was enough to send Domon into gales of mirth.

Tanya scowled as she shouldered her knapsack. "Fine. I'll do it if they really ask me to, but I absolutely REFUSE to wear make-up no matter how pale everyone says I am!"

"You're too young wear it anyway." Tokiya said.

"It's cold out here." Recca suddenly spoke up. "Come on. Let's go inside before we freeze. Except Fridge-Boy, over here."

Tokiya whacked Recca's arm as the flame ninja passed him. "Watch it, Sea- Monkey."

"Uh huh. And Miki seems to be a new addition to your fan club." Recca turned around and grinned at him. "You should have seen the look on your face when she hugged you." He raced ahead before Tokiya could get his hands on something to throw at him.

"Fan club?" Tanya wore a similar grin to Recca's as they followed everyone inside. "They really weren't kidding when they told me that."

Tokiya resolved never to let his sister go shopping alone with the Monkey Crew ever again.

They waited in line to check in. It seemed that the resort was popular, for there were plenty of visitors. Tokiya could not help but groan seeing most of the female guests wink and bat their eyelashes at him.

"What did you say, Neesan?" Tanya looked up at him. She must have heard him wince.

"Nothing." Tokiya replied, watching her take her favorite red jacket and one of the beanies he bought for her out of her duffel bag.

"It really is chilly up in mountain areas." Tanya said, pulling on the jacket. Her brother reached over to put the beanie on her head.

"Which is why I'm sure you'll enjoy the hot spring."

It was finally their turn to check in. They received their suite card keys immediately when they found out Recca was the owner's brother. They squeezed themselves and all their luggage into the elevator and reached their floor. After a good five minutes, they found the two suites they had been assigned.

Well, I'll stay with the girls." Kagerou said. She slotted in her key card and opened up the suite to the right. The boys were to take the one on the left. "Let's unpack and meet at the restaurant for dinner. I'm sure you all want to take a look around after we settle ourselves in."

"Come on, Tanya-chan." Fuuko took the little girl's hand and followed the rest of the females into their suite.

"Wow!" Fuuko breathed, taking in the suite they had been given. It was HUGE. Three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, and a living room area with a big screen TV.

This was the life!

"You girls pick out where you want to sleep." Said Kagerou, graciously. "I'm going to put away all this food." She gestured to the coolers and baskets they had brought in.

"Alright." Ganko picked the room in the middle and began to lug all the pieces of baggage she brought, which, besides her fluffy pink five-piece luggage set, also included three makeup kits and a beach tote filled with magazines. Yanagi followed her, carrying her own bags.

Fuuko sighed, smiling at her adoptive sister. She was growing up too fast. From the stories Ganko had been telling over the phone, she and Kaoru Koganei already had fanclubs to match Tokiya's.

She scooped up her two backpacks and grinned at Tanya. "Want to stay with me, sweetie? You'll end up with three colors of polish on your fingernails and toenails of you stay with my sister and Yanagi.

Tanya looked appalled at the prospect of having to actually put on nail polish. "I-I'll stay with you."

"Come on." Fuuko led the way into the room on the left. "Let's unpack quick so we can have a tour of this place."

The boy's suite was similar to the girls'. Only with less vases and glassware. Domon and Recca had a huge argument over who would get a room to himself since Kaoru had already claimed the couch bed until Tokiya, smirking amusedly, went into the argued-over room and shut the door.

"HEY!" Recca and Domon yelled.

"That was supposed to be MY room, Fridge-Boy!"

"Whaddaya mean YOUR room?"

"He got to it first, fair and square." Tokiya heard Shigeo laugh from the other side of the door. "You two will have to share the other room."

More sounds of squabbling reached his ears as the two began to unpack noisily in the room next to his.

He removed his clothes from his duffel bag and began to fill up the closet, taking his time to hang up his trademark polo shirts and pants. He had brought some normal shirts too, and those went into the chest of drawers by the bedside, along with his underwear. He winced, holding up a pair of boxers with giraffes all over it. That does it. He would never let Tanya help him pack undergarments EVER again.

No matter. He would get her back later.

Kaoru, along with Recca and Domon came into his room, still talking loudly. Dang. He forgot to lock the door. He quickly shoved the giraffe boxers into the top drawer and turned around.

"Have you ever heard of knocking? It goes like this." Tokiya thudded his knuckles thrice against the wood of the bedside table.

"Sorry, dude." Recca slumped down on the bed, along with the snacks he brought. Domon chose to sink into an armchair. Kaoru sat on the floor. Tokiya _humpfed_ and stowed his bag inside the closet.

"So, did you see the look on Fuuko's face when Miki hugged you?" Recca asked, grinning like a Cheshire Cat. "She looked kinda jealous for a split second."

Tokiya's heart hammered pleasantly against his chest. He chose to remain calm. "What are you trying to say, Monkey?"

"Aw, Come on!" Domon raised his arms to the back of his head and in a relaxed pose. "We all saw you feeding her back at the restaurant we had lunch in!"

"And you let her eat from your plate." Recca added, opening up a bag of chips.

"And you were staring at her while pouring half the gravy boat on your chicken." Kaoru put in.

"So that's why it was almost empty!" Recca chomped on some Cheetos.

"Face it, man." Domon pressed the button on the side of the armchair that lifted up the footrest. "We know you like her."

Tokiya could not hide the blush rising in his cheeks. "You-"

"I know you gave her a jacket too." Recca's smile was widening. I asked her about it when she and my Hime went grocery shopping with me and Mom for all the food we brought along for this trip. She was wearing it."

Tokiya felt his insides warm up at the thought of Fuuko wearing his gift. He turned to Domon, who was wearing the same grin as Recca. "You don't seem bothered by all of this."

Domon adjusted his feet into a more comfortable position. "Yeah. I realized I was more of obsessively infatuated, rather than in love with her. If I kept it up, I knew I was going to hurt her sooner or later, so I got over her and moved on. She was happy when I told her I got a girl. A good friend, that's what Fuuko is to me."

"You have a girl?" Tokiya raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." Domon sank deeper into the armchair. "You're not the only one who's got charm."

"I find that hard to believe." Tokiya sat down on one of the beanbags at the foot of the bed.

Domon threw a cushion at him, which he dodged easily.

"So, what are you going to do about her?" Recca inquired, tossing some snacks to his friends.

"About who?" the Ice-Prince asked, catching the bag of Lays Recca had passed him.

"Don't play dumb. It doesn't suit you." Recca teased. "About Fuuko. What are you going to do about her?"

"I don't know if I should do anything. Maybe she's already dating someone."

"Ah-hah! You're admitting you really like her!" Recca crowed. "You sound jealous, Fridge-Boy! And FYI, Fuuko's not dating anybody right now. After all that heartbreak she got over Raiha saying he'd kill her without a second thought to protect Kurei back when we were still enemies with the Uruha, she hasn't even thought of dating anyone."

Tokiya bristled at the sound of Raiha's name. That wannabe really did hurt Fuuko's feelings. He had seen her hold back the tears during that battle.

Recca turned over so he lay on his stomach. "You all right, Tokiya? You look like you want to throw someone out a window."

"I'm fine." Tokiya replied. He paused before asking; "Why do you three want me to get together with her anyway?"

"Because you're the right guy for her." Recca answered. "We wouldn't approve of anyone less."

"I mean, you care for her, right?" Domon sat up, rested his chin on his hand, and surveyed Tokiya.

The Ensui-master nodded.

"There we go." Recca said. "You do care about her a lot. And you only show it when you think no one's watching." Grins spread themselves once more on his, Kaoru's, and Domon's faces. "Beneath that freezer attitude, we know you have a soft spot for her. And you've already proven you're good at taking care of kids, though if you try and make any too early with Fuuko, I'll pommel you within an inch of your life. She is my best friend after all."

"I have no plans of being a teenage father, Recca." Tokiya turned to face the flame caster. "And how did I prove myself adequate in taking care of children?"

"Tanya. The way you take care of her."

Tokiya smiled. "It probably only _looks_ like I'm good at taking care of her because she can practically take care of herself. All I have to do is get her an ATM account and she'd be all set. During the past week, it was like she was taking care of me. She knows how to COOK, for crying out loud, and she was the one who reminded me to pack my toothbrush this morning."

Recca, Kaoru, and Domon laughed, emitting bits of chips from their mouths.

"But it's good to have custody of her." Tokiya mused, as he opened his own bag of crisps. "I was afraid I wouldn't be very good at being a big brother, but everything's working out just fine." He popped a chip into his mouth.

"Well, treasure all those moments because from the way she looks right now, she'll grow up to be a total babe." Recca guffawed. "You'll be beating off all her suitors with a stick! Using your Ensui would be a bit too extreme."

"Like I'd let her date at an early age!" Tokiya looked absolutely livid about the idea.

"Come on! She's a sensible kid. I'm sure she won't go out with some idiot who's sure to try and do something stupid to her." Kaoru spoke up.

"And if that ever does happen, we'll help you punch that moron's lights out." Domon cracked his knuckles.

"Yeah." Recca agreed. "We've only known her for a short time, but she's easy to get attached to."

Tokiya gave his friends one of his rare, appreciative smiles. "Thanks, guys."

They sat in companionable silence, eating up their snacks. Domon swallowed he last of his chips and stood up.

"Come on, Fang Boy. Unpack your PS 2 so we can play some games." He lead the way outside, intending to fully take advantage of the 40 inch, flat screen TV in the living room area of their suite. "I know Recca's parents would throttle me if I brought any X-rated movies, so I guess we have to settle for Playstation."

"You didn't bring anything X-rated? There's another TV in our room!" Recca admonished. "We could've still watched some!"

Tokiya couldn't help but be amused at their gibbering. "If you even think about renting any, Hanabishi, I'll be sure to let Yanagi-san know."

Kaoru laughed while he set up his PS 2.

"Shut up and get that plugged in, Fang Boy!" Recca pulled a beanbag over. "For that, you and me, first battle of Tekken 5, Icicle Man. You lose, you buy the first round of beer when we hang out at the bar tonight."

"Deal." Tokiya picked up one of the controllers Kaoru unpacked.

Domon settled for fetching them more snacks. Shigeo came out of the shower.

"I'll be in the girl's suite, boys. I promised Kagerou I'd help her unpack the food."

"Sure, Dad." Recca looked up long enough to wave to his father before hitting select on his controller. He and Tokiya started picking out their character fighters.

Fuuko and Tanya came out of their room and found Shigeo helping Kagerou and Yanagi put away all the food they brought to into the refrigerator and cupboards.

"You need any help?" Fuuko asked, coming forward to take some of the fruit Kagerou was unwrapping.

Tanya began helping Yanagi set aside the packets of coffee.

"It's all right." Kagerou smiled at them. "Why don't you all have a look around the resort? Shigeo and I can finish unloading all the food. You girls should go around so you know what you want to do first tomorrow."

"Are you sure?" Yanagi asked.

"We don't mind helping." Added Fuuko, as she put the all the fruit she had relieved Kagerou of into a basket on the counter.

"We'll finish up." Shigeo assured them. "You girls go on. The boys seem to want to stay in our suite and play video games. At least you girls will know your way around by tomorrow."

"All right. I'll go get Ganko. She must be done drying her nail polish by now." Yanagi went back into her and Ganko's room.

In a minute, she and Ganko were back, the latter having pink, purple, and baby blue glitter nail polish on alternate fingernails.

The girls promised to be at the restaurant at seven for dinner and then trudged out of the room.

When they got out into the hall, Tanya asked if she could tell her brother she was going around.

"Sure. Fuuko smiled. "We'll wait for you out here."

Tanya knocked and heard Recca's tone yell "It's open!"

She came in and found the boys sprawled in front of the 40-inch TV screen, playing-

"Tekken 5?" Tanya hurried over. "Cool!"

"Hey, squirt!" Recca paused the game and tousled Tanya's hair, making her laugh. "What're you doing here?"

"Fuuko and Ganko and Yanagi want to go have a look around." She replied before turning to her brother. "May I go with them?"

Tokiya grinned. "Of course."

"We'll be at the restaurant by seven." Tanya smiled back, before pointing to the screen. "You're getting massacred, Neesan. Use some special moves."

"There are_ special_ moves?" Tokiya turned his gaze back to his fighting character. "And how do you know?"

"I play this game too. You didn't unpack my PlayStation. I noticed it was still in a box in my closet."

Tokiya grimaced.

"Man, Fridge-Boy. You lost the first round because all you could throw at me was a flying kick!" Recca walloped him with an empty chip bag.

Tokiya threw the bag back at the flame caster. "Just because I prefer mind games and not this artificial violence doesn't mean I won't get the hang of it sooner or later."

Tanya laughed along with the others before saying; "They're waiting for me outside. I'll see you all for dinner."

"Later, Pyro." Kaoru grinned at her.


	16. So It Thickens

**Chapter 16: So It Thickens**

"Here, this is a good spot." Yanagi hurried over to a bench in one of the picturesque walkways of the resort. She took solo pictures of Fuuko, Ganko, and Tanya, and Fuuko obliged by taking one of her. Fortunately, an employee of the hotel passed by and graciously took a snapshot of the four of them.

Yanagi thanked the waiter before he left and scrolled through the images of her digital camera.

"These look great!"

"You take pictures at every spot we pass by." Fuuko laughed, as she looked over her best friend's shoulder at the photographs.

"You can never take too many pictures." Yanagi grinned back. "Come on. I want to see that enormous fishpond this place is also famous for."

There were a lot of guests taking advantage of the cold weather. As the girls passed by some skateboard-toting teenagers, they barred the way.

"Babysitting because you got no dates, ladies? We're available!". One of them gave a sticky smile and threw aside a toothpick he had been using and nearly hit Tanya.

"Sorry, not interested!" Fuuko tried to push past them.

"Aaww, come on!" a boy with a skull tattoo on his wrist grabbed her waist.

"We won't bite. Unless you want us to." He licked his lips.

Yanagi pulled Ganko aside as another boy tried to slip an arm around both of them. She clutched Tanya to her hip and saw Fuuko's expression. The one that meant she was angry.

"Let go, you sleaze!" Fuuko twisted Skull Tattoo's arm off her. He howled in pain.

"Wench!" he spat. "You'll pay for that! Get over here!"

"Make me!" Fuuko balled her hand into a fist as he reached for her. She was about to punch him all the way off the mountain when a hand stopped her and punched Skull Tattoo first.

Skull Tattoo howled yet again as he fell against his friends who hauled him up by his armpits.

"What's your problem man? You her boyfriend?" Toothpick Boy shouted.

"No." said an all-too-familiar voice. "But I know the owner of this resort and I can have you easily thrown out after I hurt you personally. Believe me when I say I'll make it painful."

"Let's get outta here." Skull Tattoo managed to say in spite of his bloody lip. "We'll get a piece of that wench later. His friends followed behind him.

Normally, Fuuko would have thrown something at their retreating backs or blown them up so high they would have burned up upon re-entering the atmosphere. She regretted leaving her Fuujin in her bag.

Now, she focused her attention on the someone in front of her; long hair tied back with a band across the forehead. Stunningly handsome features. Deep green eyes….

"What'll it be boys?" the bartender asked the four young men who entered the bar.

Tokiya peeled out a couple of bills from his wallet and placed them on the bar. "Beer please. And not the Light version."

"You got it." The bartender plunked down four tankards of the foaming drink.

Recca took a swig. "Man, Tokiya, you actually drink?"

"Yeah. We thought you prefer virgin Piňa Coladas." Domon downed half his drink in one gulp.

Tokiya gave them his famous 'Look'. "It goes to show how little you all know about me."

"You never did let us get to know you fully." Recca hiccupped after his third swallow.

Tokiya nodded. "Well, now you all know I do drink. I keep a few cans of beer around my place. Helps to have a stash handy after mind-numbing examinations."

"Well, the next round's on me." Recca removed his wallet from his pocket. "I think finding out you're actually human deserves a good old male drinking session."

In spite of himself, Tokiya joined in as all four Hokage boys clinked their glasses together in a toast.

There was a deafening moment of silence before Fuuko found her voice.

"R-Raiha?"

"Hello, Fuuko." The Raijin-wielder smiled the smile that had charmed her years ago.

"H-hello…"

Raiha turned to her companions. "Good to see you as well, Yanagi-san, Ganko-chan."

"H-hi." Yanagi replied. Ganko smiled tentatively.

"Is this Tanya Mikagami?" Raiha smiled at the little girl pressed to Yanagi's hip by a protective hug. "Miki told me about her. Tokiya's younger sister, am I correct?"

"Yes." Tanya held out her hand. "Pleased to meet you."

"I'm Raiha." His grin widened as he shook the little girl's hand.

Fuuko stepped over to where they were, rubbing a spot on her forearm where a wristband of Skull Tattoo had caught her. Raiha turned to look at her, his eyes filled up with concern.

"Did they hurt you?"

"I-I'm fine." Fuuko stammered. "Are you here for the engagement party too?"

"Yes." He responded. "I was glad when Miki and Neon told me they were inviting Team Hokage."

Yanagi caught the 'Please Help!' look on her best friend's face. "We were going over to the fish pond to take some pictures-"

"I was hoping I could have a moment alone with Fuuko, if that's all right?" Raiha interrupted before she could finish the excuse to bail them out of the awkward scene.

Yanagi and Ganko looked over at Fuuko, who took a deep breath before nodding. Tanya was looking from Raiha to Fuuko and back again.

"We'll wait for you by the fishpond." Ganko told her sister.

The three left Fuuko and Raiha on the walkway. Tanya looked up at the two girls who each held her by a hand.

"I get the feeling he was someone special for Fuuko-san?"

Yanagi smiled sadly down at the little girl. "You have no idea how much he was, sweetheart."

"I hope you forgive me for stealing you away from your friends." Raiha said, leading the way to a nearby bench. He sat down. Fuuko followed, choosing to sit on the opposite end of the bench, far away from him.

"I don't eat people alive, you know." He joked. Fuuko only gave him a weak smile and moved an inch closer.

Raiha sighed. "I guess I deserve the way you're staying away from me after how I've hurt you."

"It just feels painful to see you again." Fuuko replied honestly, feeling a stab of guilt at the ached look that crossed Raiha's face.

"I did hope that you would all get invited. I wanted the chance to get to talk to you….. and find out if you still feel something for me." He moved closer so that he could grasp her hands.

"R-Raiha…I….."

"I want you back, Fuuko." He blurted out. "I have since the moment I broke up with you."

Fuuko stared at him in complete shock. "When you knew how I felt about you, you shoved me away because of Kurei!"

"I know. I was wrong to have hurt you like that. I didn't want it…. I….." he stopped, seeing the tears that fell from her eyes. He brushed them away with his hand. "I tried to find the right time to come to you... but I saw how well you moved on from what happened between you and me. You graduated high school, went into college. I didn't want to ruin that."

"What _do_ you want?" Fuuko blurted out.

"I want a second chance, Fuuko."

Fuuko brushed a lock of purple hair from her face and swallowed. "Raiha. Please… let me think about it first…. I'm not so sure I about what I feel for you right now."

Raiha sat closer. "Will you let me be your escort during the engagement party?"

"I…."

"Alright, not that fast if you're too uncomfortable. Just say you'll dance AT LEAST once with me."

"Alright…."

Raiha's handsome features brightened as he smiled again. "Thank you. Well, don't let me keep you this long from your friends."

Fuuko nodded. "I'll see you." She managed a smile before hurrying away.


	17. Dinner and Disagreements

**Chapter 17: Dinner and Disagreements**

Shigeo crossed his arms and smiled amusedly at the scene in front of him:

The Hokage boys were dead – drunk and sprawled in the living room of their suite. Kaoru on the floor, Domon on the armchair, Recca on the couch, and Tokiya on a beanbag. From the six- pack rings on the floor, he guessed they had purchased cans of beer, raided the suite's mini-bar and knocked themselves out.

'_This room has to be soundproof if no one can hear them from outside.'_ He shook his head at the loud snores emanating from the four. He had searched for them at the bar, the arcade, and even in the pool area, till he finally decided to check the suite.

And here they were. Solid drunk. Kagerou would have their heads if he didn't get them awake.

He cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled.

"WAKE UP CALL!"

The boys groaned and stirred reluctantly. Recca threw a cushion in the direction of his father's voice. Shigeo caught it and whacked his son's shoulder.

"Come on boys, get up. You picked a fine time to pull this stunt. They're all probably waiting downstairs for us. I want you changed and mouthwashed in ten minutes. Recca, your mother probably ordered our food already."

The boys let out another collective groan and wobbled up. Tokiya clutched his head as the four of them headed for the bathrooms.

"That's the last time I let you prepare me a 'special' cocktail, Domon." He shuddered at the sour taste in his mouth. It would take half the bottle of mouthwash he brought to get that gone. Why, oh why had he let these monkeys talk him into a second round in their suite after their seven tankards each at the bar?

"I don't think it'll be the last." Domon slurred, swaying as he walked. "You asked for more after I'd already made you three."

"Tokiya Mikagami. Strong Taker." Recca laughed as he hauled Kaoru by the arm. "Who knew?"

They went on down as soon as they had finished changing and gargling. By the time they reached the private dining room booked for them, they found the food had just been served.

"You're all very chipper, this evening." Kagerou raised an eyebrow worthy of Tokiya Mikagami.

The boys were still shaky despite their freshening up. Recca feebly put an arm around his Hime's shoulder as he sat down next to her. His head nearly fell to rest in the breadbasket Yanagi passed him.

"We're… fi-fine, Mom."

Tokiya settled in between Fuuko and his sister and took a grateful gulp of water. The room felt like it was on wheels.

"Early hangover." Fuuko explained to Tanya's questioning look. She passed the other breadbasket to Tokiya.

"I'd better order some coffee." Shigeo signaled the waiter over again. "You boys get something hot down to eat first."

Kagerou ladled out bowls of soup from the big pot in the middle of their table and passed them out to the boys.

"We can forego the 'ladies first' rule tonight. You drinkers will have boulder-sized headaches tomorrow if you don't eat."

The four in question accepted their soup with weakly mumbled thank-yous and began to eat, savoring the tangy flavor that got their senses a bit more alert.

As soon as the waiter brought over the coffee pot, Shigeo handed out mugs of the hot drink.

"I trust this will be the last time you boys will drink yourselves silly in the _afternoon_?"

They nodded vigorously, wincing at the headaches the sudden movements brought.

Team Hokage started on the main course of lobster after the soup. Ganko had to slice Kaoru's lobster meat for him since the Kougan-Anki master was spilling food down the sides of his plate.

"Good evening." Came a voice from the doorway.

They all looked up to find Kurei standing there, his smile lighting up his handsome features.

Recca stood up and took unsteady steps towards his brother.

"Hey, you Joker! Nice to see you."

"You too, little brother." Kurei clapped an arm around his shoulder. "You all right?"

"Hangover." Recca admitted, grinning. "Your bar serves good strong drinks."

Kurei guided him back to his seat, looking amused.

Everyone began to give him their compliments about the beautiful resort and congratulated him on his engagement.

"It took me years to realize she was the one." Kurei laughed after he had thanked them. "I'm sure I made the right decision when I asked Neon to marry me."

"On that account, thank you for inviting all of us to your engagement party." Kagerou said.

"You're welcome. I was also hoping for you all to be part of the wedding entourage." Kurei said.

"Definitely." Recca answered, while everyone else nodded in agreement. "You can count on us."

His brother smiled. "The nuptials will be held in two weeks. Neon wanted to schedule it so you all wouldn't miss a day of classes."

"Darn." Kaoru joked. Kurei ruffled his hair.

"I'm glad all of you are here. The engagement party's on Thursday night here at the West Bar. Neon says to say hi since she's busy with the engagement party and the wedding details. She's been on the phone for two days straight. I honestly didn't know there were so many adjustments to each part of a wedding gown. She says she'll come find you when the hotel chefs are done bugging her about the cake."

"Bet you haven't gotten your tux yet." Recca grinned.

"Yeah. Neon's scheduled my fittings millions of times but things keep coming up." Kurei returned the smile. "I'd better get it done soon, or I'll be getting married in a wheelchair. Her punches have gotten stronger."

"So, what's she like when she's not trying to kill you in a battle?" Kaoru asked.

"She's a wonderful woman." Kurei answered. "And I plan on spending the rest of my life getting to know what she's like as a wife."

"Which will probably end up not happening if you don't get to your tux fitting." A voice said from behind him.

"Hi, Miki!" Fuuko grinned.

"Hey!" Miki smiled back at her before turning to Kurei. "Neon's still being fussed over by the hotel chefs about appetizers. She asked me to tell you your tux designer is in waiting for you in the lobby."

"Thanks." Kurei grinned at her. "I'd better go if I'm still to be your brother-in-law." He gave everybody a wave. "See you all later."

Miki gave them an apologetic smile as soon as Kurei was out of earshot. "I'm amazed at his way of organizing things. Neon's hasn't been the only one with a lot to do. That tux fitting has been the least of his problems."

Everybody laughed and Kagerou asked the young woman to join them.

"Thank you." Miki's smile widened. She sank into the chair a waiter brought over and placed between Tanya and Kaoru.

"So, Kurei says he wants us in the wedding entourage?" Shigeo passed her a plateful of seafood pasta.

Miki nodded. "You've all agreed? Great! Neon wanted it too. She's been having nonstop phone calls from the invitation makers. She still hasn't submitted the full list. Aki and I have been helping out, and finding a flower girl has been a frantic difficulty. Until this afternoon." She grinned at Tanya, who let out a laugh.

They all continued to eat through the four-course meal, chatting amiably. By the time they were through with dessert, the Hokage boys were starting to feel the later effects of the beer.

Miki checked her watch and daintily wiped her mouth with a napkin. "Thank you so much for letting me join you for dinner. I'm afraid I have to go and help Neon and Aki with the reception arrangements. We still haven't scheduled the fittings for the bridal entourage and the groomsmen and Neon still hasn't seen the samples for the entourage dresses."

"Don't let us keep you." Kagerou said understandingly. "If we can be of assistance in any way, come and get us."

"Thank you." Miki smiled as she stood up to leave. "If we get some free time tomorrow, maybe you ladies would like to join me and my sisters for a dip in the hot springs?"

"Of course." Kagerou replied.

"Kurei must've forgot to ask you guys to join him." Miki turned to Shigeo. "He told me he was going to ask you. I'll remind him when I see him later. He's already booked one of the springs for tomorrow afternoon."

She bade them good-bye and gave them another smile before exiting the room.

"Well, we all have something to look forward to for tomorrow." Kagerou said as she signaled a waiter over with the gesture for 'bill, please.'

The waiter informed them Kurei left word that their meals during their stay would be free of charge. He also obliged a request from Yanagi for a few pictures of all of them sitting at the table.

The Healer took back her digital camera and thanked him. Everyone filed out of the restaurant and went back up to their floor of the hotel.

"Anyone up for a walk?" Yanagi asked when they had reached the doors of their suites. "I bet this place is beautiful at night."

"I'm game." Fuuko said, as they waited for Kagerou and Shigeo to open the doors to their suites. "Let me go inside for a minute." She ducked in after Kagerou and Ganko.

Tanya tugged on her brother's shirt. "May I go?"

"Alright. As long as you're not yet tired." Tokiya knelt down and zipped her jacket up for her.

"Thanks." Tanya smiled.

Fuuko came back out, wearing her blue hoodie jacket with her Fuujin in one of the pockets. Yanagi threw her a questioning look.

"In case we run into those bozos from this afternoon." There was a twinkle in her eye.

"What bozos?" Recca demanded, the slur gone from his speech. The hangover feeling was coming back, but he fought it. He took hold of his Hime's arm. "You didn't tell me about that. What did they-"

"I'm alright." Yanagi consoled him. "Fuuko-" she stopped short, not knowing if she should continue.

Fuuko stood still, hands clenching and unclenching at her sides. Shigeo had gone into the boys' suite and she could hear Kagerou inside the girls' suite. Ganko came back out and stood next to Kaoru.

"Fuuko did what?" Recca pressed, looking from his Hime to his best friend. Tokiya stood up from where he was kneeling, his eyebrows slanting into a concerned frown.

Fuuko looked as though she was trying to suppress a memory very badly. Finally she gave in and spoke up.

"I wrenched up the arm of the guy who told his buddies to try to get fresh with us. I was about to hit him when someone held me back and beat me to the punch."

Tokiya felt his stomach drop. He knew that tone of voice. He had only ever heard her use it when talking about a certain someone.

Tanya registered the look on her brother's face. She clutched his hand comfortingly. Tokiya looked down and pulled her closer.

Domon leaned against the doorframe of the boy's suite and voiced the question on Recca and Kaoru's faces.

"Who helped you out?"

Fuuko's voice went softer. "Raiha."

"That JERK who thinks he's a better ninja than me?" Recca almost bellowed. "You sure he wasn't with those clowns you were talking about?"

Fuuko shook her head no.

"Then there's no way we're letting you walk around by yourselves." Recca declared. Tokiya was about to say something in agreement when Fuuko spoke again.

"Hold on a minute. Raiha threatened to have them thrown out of the resort after he punched the one I almost beat up."

"That still doesn't guarantee they'll leave you alone." Recca insisted. "At least one of us guys should be with you when you girls go around the resort."

"I can take them all and knock them out so bad, they won't remember what their names are!" Fuuko protested, brandishing her Fuujin. She was about to say more when Yanagi put a hand on her shoulder.

The wind-wielder lowered her hands. "You don't trust us to be able to take care of ourselves?"

"We trust you." It was Tokiya who answered this time. "In Raiha? No. Not in a million years."

"He -"

"Sorry, Fuuko." Domon crossed his arms. "We never wanted that pretty-boy for you."

Fuuko's blue eyes went a shade deeper and began to water. Tokiya found himself instinctively reaching out a hand to her when she suddenly backed away from all of them.

"He—he told me he wants me back." She looked at Yanagi. "That's what he said when he asked for a word in private."

It seemed all her friends were holding his or her breath. Tokiya was looking especially livid.

"I told him I'd think about it."

While everyone else exhaled in relief that she didn't say yes right away, Tokiya felt jealousy cloud his vision. He saw everything in a sea of red….

"Neesan?" he heard a squeak from somewhere near his hip. "I can't feel my hand…."

He snapped out of the boiling sensation in brewing in his blood and looked down at his sister. He realized he must have been squeezing her wrist in anger.

"I'm sorry," he said, sheepishly. Tanya grinned wryly and flexed blood back into her fingers.

Fuuko's next sentence got their attention back.

"Look, I know you all mean well, but this isn't this bodyguarding business a bit on the overreacting side? Raiha won't jump out of corners and start attacking if that's what you boys are thinking-"

"How can you be so sure?" Kaoru asked, balling up his fists.

"This is crazy!" Fuuko threw up her hands in exasperation. "He's an ex-boyfriend, not an ex-convict! And he happened to help me out with some idiots who tried to sleaze their way into getting us!"

"Alright, stop it!" Yanagi said loudly enough to shut them up, but low enough so Shigeo couldn't hear. The door to the girls' suite was still open but thankfully Kagerou was in the bathroom.

'We're NOT going to argue about this." Yanagi said, firmly. Tokiya recoiled. The Healer's tone reminded him of Mifuyu's way of puffing up when he did something bad.

"Maybe taking a walk tonight isn't such a good idea anymore. Let's do it right after dinner tomorrow." Yanagi continued. "It's best that we all get some rest."

Everyone sullenly nodded and began to greet each other awkward goodnights.

Tokiya gave his sister an extra hug. "You sure you don't want to stay with me?"

"I'll be okay." Tanya promised before she followed the rest of the girls into their suite.

For some reason, (even the boys with their hangover side effects) Team Hokage, except Kagerou and Shigeo all stayed awake thinking for a long time before their thoughts lulled them to sleep.


	18. Nightmare

**Chapter 18: Nightmare**

(dream)

_ Tanya hopped down from the bright yellow school bus that brought her to and from school five days a week. She was already running late to training. Why, oh WHY did she stay an extra half hour after school?_

_ Oh yeah, some sort of presentation her class had been assigned to do. Their Homeroom teacher had asked them to stay after the final bell so that she could assign roles. _

_ 'At least I got a job painting up the backdrops. I'm good at that.' Tanya thought to herself as she practically darted up the street that led to the house where she lived with her parents. She had ten minutes to grab her gear and hightail it to her Sensei's house for her training session. Sensei Megumi was NOT one of those teachers who tolerated tardiness…. She'd get a fifty push-ups punishment for sure…._

_ The street was strangely empty as she dashed along the sidewalk. No, wait, scratch that, there was a whole hubbub of people near…. Hold on, was that HER house?_

_Tanya raced up to the crowd and squeezed her way through. _

_"Pardon me, please…. This is where I live…. Excuse me….."_

_ Firetrucks had congregated on both sides of the street outside her house. From the looks of things, they had just put out a fire. _

_ Tanya's breath came in faster rhythms. She forced herself through to the front of the crowd and nearly fell backwards in shock. _

_ Almost half of her house had been burned. Scorched and splintering debris littered the lawn. The side of the house with her room was still somehow intact, but the sight of the singed furniture sticking out of the parts of the house that were still standing was enough to make her tear up. _

_A motherly sort of woman walked up to her, an official looking seal on the corner of her lapel. _

_"You fit the description of the child that's said to live here. What's your name?"_

_ It took Tanya a few moments to register the question. When she finally looked up at the woman, she still didn't answer. Her parents taught her to never trust strangers._

_The woman gave her an understanding smile. "I know your Sensei. Megumi Kyoza, am I correct?" _

_ Tanya couldn't answer. Not while she saw plenty of emergency-response crews beginning to emerge from the intact doors and windows of her house. _

_"Miss, I really need to-"_

_ The woman stopped short when the child ran over to a rescue team that were heaving out what looked like big black bags from the burnt part of the house._

_"Wait!" the woman called._

_ Tanya wasn't listening, she was staring in horror at the black bags the rescue team were setting down on the lawn. Those big black bags that were large enough to hold an adult human body…._

_ "No…." Tanya ran over to the body bags, her eyes filling up with tears. She didn't care that she was already feeling her aura flow free and unrestrained. She forgot all about her Sensei's teachings of hiding her energy…. _

_"Please, please, no….." the tears smoldered in her eyes and streamed down her cheeks…._

_ She wrenched away from a man with the rescue crew who had attempted to restrain her and yanked open the zipper of the body bag that she reached first._

_Her hand trembled at the sight that she knew was burned into her eyes forever…._

_The charred body of a woman with dark hair and pale skin. _

_ She made to pull open the zipper of the other body bag, but all she saw was a glimpse of the familiar silvery hair, now burnt, before she was pulled away with insistent tugs and gentle sympathies._

_ She wrenched her arm from what felt like the fifth person who tried to restrain her, ran to the tire swing her father had hung up for her on a sturdy willow at the front of their lawn, collapsed onto it, and began to sob._

_"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO…_

(end dream)

_ OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO…._!"

Tanya heaved herself bolt upright in bed. Her energy flare died down as quickly as it had turned up. She turned to see Fuuko still sound asleep on the other bed. She exhaled in relief.

She turned to look out at the night sky. The sight of a beautiful moon and a myriad of stars usually gave her comfort. Tonight, it only helped her heart stop hammering.

Still feeling scared, she curled up into a ball and began to sob as quietly as she could.

Past 4 am, she made her way to the kitchen of their suite. Kagerou told the girls they could help themselves to anything they wanted from the food supplies she had brought.

Tanya snapped her fingers to light up the stove. She heated some water in a kettle and made herself a mug of tea, bringing it over to the kitchen's enormous breakfast nook.

Sigh. Nightmares again. The same one over and over, and she still cried when she woke up. She didn't even tell her sensei she had them. Most likely Megumi would have brought her to a doctor and she'd have a prescription for those sleeping pills that would make anyone sleep like a drunk.

She hadn't even told Tokiya about her nightmares. He had enough to deal with, now that she had come to live with him.

Tanya finished the last of her tea and brought it over to the sink in the kitchen. The hot drink just got her more awake, which was the effect she was looking for. Not for the first time in her life, she felt afraid to sleep.

* * *

><p>A soft <em>chink<em> of a mug being placed down on the table next to her got Tanya to lift her head from where she was resting it on her arms.

"Hey, sweetie." Came Fuuko's gentle tone. "Is everything okay?."

Tanya nodded and forced her tired brain to focus, noticing a mug similar to the one Fuuko was holding, next to her elbow.

"Thank you." She took a sip of what was in the mug, and found it was hot milk.

"You shouldn't be up this early, it's only ten minutes to five am."

"I…. Can't….couldn't sleep anymore."

Fuuko reached out to pat the child's hair. "Do you want me to go get your brother?"

"No…." Tanya replied. "He'll only worry."

"He wouldn't be a very good big brother if he didn't."

"He already is a very good big brother. Couldn't have asked for anyone better."

Fuuko took a sip of her own hot milk. She had woken up to find her little roommate gone, and had worriedly shot out of bed to find her sitting on one of the large breakfast nook stools with her head buried in her arms. The Fuujin-wielder took another look at the younger Mikagami. She had dark circles under her eyes.

It was troubling to find that weary look on a child of seven.

"Anything I can do?" Fuuko asked.

Tanya finished up her milk and put her mug down, rubbing her eyes.

"Thanks, but I'll be okay. I'll go get my sketchbook and…."

"Oh, no you're not." Fuuko said, firmly. She took the child's hand and led the way back to their room.

"You're going back to sleep."

"But…."

"Tanya, Tokiya's really going to worry if he sees you looking like this. Get another few hours rest."

Tanya allowed herself to be tucked back into bed.

"I'm afraid." She managed to say.

"I'm right here with you." Fuuko assured her, sitting down on the edge of the bed. She took the child's hand in hers.

Tanya finally closed her tired eyes. Fuuko waited a long while, watching her young friend's facial features furrow into a frown. Gently, the wind-tamer reached out and brushed a lock of ebony hair from the sleeping child's face.

Tanya's brow uncreased. She slept.


	19. Caught On You

**Chapter 19: Caught on You**

It was breakfast time. Team Hokage had gathered in the girls' suite and were sitting around the breakfast nook enjoying a scrumptious breakfast prepared by Kagerou. The delicious smells wafted around the kitchen.

Conversations started. Kagerou informed them that Miki called to say the girls were invited to join her and her sisters at the hot spring at ten. The boys would have their turn later on with Kurei.

"It'll be nice to take a good dip." Fuuko replied to Sakoshita's excited exclamations. The wind-princess was smiling too.

And Tokiya's imagination was running completely haywire.

Fuuko in a towel. Fuuko wearing _only_ a towel.

Only a towel.

_One_ piece of furry cloth.

Tokiya nearly slapped himself. He had to snap out of it. The fact that they were all still wearing pajamas wasn't helping the situation. He knew she was wearing a white tank top and pink shorts under the powder blue bathrobe that she hurriedly threw on when she stepped out of her and Tanya's room and saw the boys were joining them for breakfast.

He put a forkful of scrambled eggs in his mouth and forced himself to chew and swallow normally.

"We boys could check out the badminton courts." Kaoru was saying. Recca and Domon immediately agreed while wolfing down their second helpings.

Tokiya hardly heard them. Even when she was covered up, it was still hard to tear his eyes away from her. She had let her now long purple hair loose from the scrunchie that held it in place while she was asleep. It fell in gorgeous waves that framed her face well.

"What do you think, Tokiya-sempai?"

"Beautiful." His eyes were still trained on her.

"What?" Everyone said together, staring at him in surprise.

Tokiya blinked and all too late registered what Kaoru just asked him.

"I—I mean….. sounds good…. Badminton…." _'Darn that rush of blood to my cheeks!'_

His male friends flashed him knowing grins. Tanya, who had been pale and inattentive throughout the meal, was now grinning as mischievously as the expression in her silver eyes.

_'Not good.' _Tokiya forced himself to stay calm.

He quickly drank some hot chocolate from his mug, hoping someone would start the conversation again. But his gaze returned to Fuuko, for it was she who broke the silence.

"How about we meet at the picnic area for lunch?"

"That's a good plan." Kagerou agreed. "Now, let's agree on a time."

Tokiya inwardly sighed in relief at the change of topic.

By the time they all agreed to meet by one' o clock, everyone was done with breakfast. Kagerou roped her son and his adoptive father to help her with the dishes and insisted that everyone go get ready.

Tokiya trudged into the boy's suite behind Domon and walked into his room to change into tennis shorts and a white shirt.

He brushed his hair back with his hands and sighed. That scene during breakfast was way too close. His emotions were more freeflowing ever since that day he brought Tanya home and met Fuuko at the park.

His little crush on the wind-princess was turning into a bit more than a crush.

Strangely enough, he didn't want to stop smiling.

* * *

><p>The elevator dinged, delivering Team Hokage down to the ground floor of the resort's hotel. They stepped outside to a cool morning.<p>

"See you later, Hime." Recca planted a kiss on his princess' cheek. Yanagi squeezed his hand affectionately.

Tokiya put his sister down, plopped a blue beanie on her head and adjusted her jacket.

"Are you warm enough?"

"Yes, Neesan." Tanya grinned at him, still looking pale. "And the hot spring will warm me up loads more."

Tokiya smiled and handed her her favorite red knapsack.

"Did you pack extra clothes?"

"Yep."

"Towels?"

"I get it, bro!" Tanya laughed. "I'll be fine."

"You sure? You look really pale. Did you get a good sleep last night?"

Tanya swallowed. "Yes…."

"Tanya?" Tokiya raised an eyebrow. "You're a really bad liar."

"Dad used to tell me that." She grumbled.

"Because it's easy to tell when you're lying."

"Dad used to say that too. And he didn't tell me how he always knew when I lie."

"Then, I won't either."

Tanya scowled, making her brother laugh. He helped her shoulder her knapsack.

"You're taking a nap after lunch." He raised a hand to silence her protests and finally got her to agree. He kissed her forehead and watched her run over to Fuuko.

* * *

><p>Fuuko had watched the Mikagami siblings' exchange a short distance away. She had turned around to wait for Tanya at the exact moment Tokiya smiled.<p>

And that smile had made her heart skip a beat.

'_That eskimo really doesn't know how handsome he is when he smiles.'_

She watched him and his sister, completely unaware that she was already staring. He and Tanya exchanged a few more words. She saw him raise an eyebrow, heard him laugh at the scowl his sister was giving him. And she smiled when she saw him kiss Tanya's forehead and follow her with his gaze….

…. Onto her! She realized Tanya was running towards her! She felt her cheeks color up.

Quickly, she turned to look from him to the young firestarter.

"Come on, honey. " she held out her hand, eager to get away from there.

Tanya watched the blush recede from Fuuko's face and smiled inwardly as she and the wind- wielder ran to catch up with the rest of the girls.


	20. You've Been Working Out

**Chapter 20: You've Been Working Out.**

"Ahh..." Yanagi moaned as she slipped into the hot spring. The rest of the girls followed her and sat on the rock formations that made natural benches for them to perch on.

"I'm glad you ladies could join us." Neon leaned back. "We were worried we'd only get to see you all at the engagement party."

"We?" Aki teased her sister. "You mean _you_. I think the last time you got to sit down for more than a minute was two days ago. What with all the preparations..."

"Alright, alright already!" Neon laughed and splashed some water in her direction. "It does feel like I've done nothing except plan for the wedding. But it's in _three weeks_, and everything isn't even half done..."

"Whoa! Slow down there." Kagerou admonished, gently. "You're here to relax."

"Thank you." Neon gripped the older woman's arm affectionately. "But now that I've got all you girls here, I'd really like to talk to you about the fittings for the bridal entourage."

"You got the design sketches?" Miki leaned forward.

"Yes. They got delivered early this morning." Her older sister replied. "I chose the deep rose red design, and I think it's a great color theme for the wedding." She reached up behind her and pulled down a clearbook containing several sketches. "I was also worried that I wouldn't be able to find a flower girl in time."

Everyone grinned at Tanya, who smiled back shyly and said "I'd be happy to do it, if... if you really want me to."

"Of course, I do." Neon gave her a gentle smile and flipped a page of the clearbook. "Would you like to see what your dress will look like?"

Tanya got up and scooted closer to the bride-to-be.

Neon scooped her up onto her lap and pointed to one of the sketches.

Tanya lightly ran her fingers over the page. "It's pretty." It was a sleeveless gown, as deep red as a fresh rose. It wasn't too puffy or girly, and nothing indicated that it would have lace.

"I'm glad you think so." Neon pulled the child into a hug and passed the clearbook around for the rest of the girls to check out the bridal entourage dresses.

There were squeals of appreciation as each of the girls had a look at the designs.

"Simple, but elegant." Kagerou said. "She's a very good designer, this _Renma Lino._"

"She's Raiha's older sister." Neon explained. "One of those up-and-coming young talents in the Japanese fashion industry."

At the mention of Raiha's name, Yanagi, Ganko, and Tanya all turned to Fuuko, who averted her eyes and seemed to be absorbed in watching the steam rise from the waters of the hot spring.

"Speaking of which, have you bumped into him yet, Fuuko?" Miki asked. "He was really excited when all of you accepted our invitation to come here."

_''I'll bet he was._' Fuuko forced a smile and looked up. "Yes, we did bump into him. Just yesterday, in fact."

"I hope you don't mind me saying, but I thought you two made a great couple." Miki wrung out her pink locks. "He really wants to get back together with you."

"He did... mention that." Fuuko clenched her hands into fists.

"Oooooh!" Aki scooted closer to her. "So? Did you say yes?"

"I... told him I'd think about it." Fuuko replied.

"You should let him be your date to the engagement party!" Miki exclaimed, excitedly.

"Alright, you two. Stop it." Neon silenced her siblings with a look. "Forgive my sisters, Fuuko. Ever since I got engaged, They've been into matchmaking everyone else."

"It's alright." Fuuko finally let a smile light up her face. "He says I owe him a dance at the engagement party."

* * *

><p>As the girls reveled in their soak at the hot springs, The Hokage boys were getting their game on in the Badminton courts.<p>

THWING! Domon swung a powerful hit that bounced the shuttlecock back over to Tokiya and Kaoru's side. "Try and get _that_!"

Tokiya easily stepped forward and hit it back across the net. "That all you got, gorilla?"

Domon laughed and let Recca take a shot. Kaoru lunged but failed to reach it in time.

"HA!" Recca yelled. "That's two to nil!" He and Domon bumped chests.

Tokiya grinned in spite of himself. He had to admit, his teammates still had the agility that allowed them to win the UBS all those years ago.

Recca checked his watch. "We're supposed to meet my brother at 11:30 at the hot springs. Rematch tomorrow?"

"You bet." Kaoru clapped the flame-master's hand and slapped high-fives with Tokiya. "Nice swing back there. Sorry I didn't get that last pitch."

"We'll get them back tomorrow." Tokiya put a hand on his shoulder and followed his friends into the showers.

Minutes later, they joined Kurei outside the double doors of the hot springs.

"Enjoying yourselves?" He asked good-naturedly, as he led the way inside.

"Sure have, big bro." Recca clapped his brother hard on the back, which nearly made him stumble forward.

"Easy!" Kurei grabbed him in a headlock. "Getting married in three weeks, remember? Can't afford any accidents, or my fiancee' will kill me herself."

"Good morning, Sir." the receptionist greeted them all. "Party of seven?"

"Yes." Kurei stepped forward to sign for them.

"Is my dad here?" Recca looked around. "He said he'd be joining us."

"Over here, son." Shigeo poked his head out the door of the men's locker rooms.

Kurei gestured to for them all to go ahead. "Our spring is at Room 3. Go on and change. I'll catch up."

The boys piled into the locker rooms and changed into towels- appropriate attire for a good soak in the hot springs.

Domon flexed his biceps, admiring his muscles in the locker room's full length mirror.

"Careful." Tokiya warned, wrapping a resort-issue white towel around his waist. "That mirror could crack under that narcissistic gaze of yours."

"Ha ha." Domon aimed a punch at him, which he easily sidestepped. "And whoa! You've been working out, Frosty!"

"What do you mean?" Tokiya raised an eyebrow.

"You used to be as skinny as a toothpick." Recca came forward, also in a towel. "We used to make bets if you had one of those pretty-boy diseases. What do you call it? Anorexia? Bulimia?"

Tokiya fought the urge to bash their heads together. "For your information, I have always eaten a balanced diet."

"You probably do _now_. But back then, you looked like someone who used those slimming-tea things that they advertise on television-."

There was a resounding _THWACK!_ As Tokiya threw a cushion he had picked up from the locker room sofa.

Recca was thrown backwards and hit a locker door. He threw the cushion to one side and lunged at the Ensui Master. "I'll get you for that, Mikagami!"

"Uh huh." Tokiya drawled, leaping to one side as Recca started chasing him around the locker room.

He dodged a kick that was aimed for his face and pulled open the door. "I'll meet you all at our assigned spring."

He closed the door, blocking a well-aimed cushion in his direction and drowning out Domon, Kaoru, and Shigeo's laughs. He grinned as well. He hadn't had this much brawlish fun with his friends since he left for college. He missed it.

He turned to look at the framed map of the hot springs hanging outside the locker room door.

_'Right. So, I make a left here, and down this area to Room 3.'_

He turned the corner and went right smack into-

"Fuuko?"

"Mi-Chan?"

Tokiya couldn't believe it. He could feel his arms moving against his will to pull him closer to the beautiful apparition before his eyes...

Fuuko Kirisawa in a towel...

_Only_ in a towel...

_One _piece of furry cloth...

"Oww... OWWW, Tokiya! Please, let me up! You're heavy!"

_That_ statement brought him down to earth with a painful bump.

"I'm-I'm sorry... I..." Tokiya couldn't believe he was stammering, much less pinning the wind-princess down on the floor.

He offered her a hand up, which to his relief, she accepted.

"Thanks." she gave him that smile that enchanted him all the way to the core. Forget crush. He was totally in love!

They were both still panting from the impact.

"I'd better be going." She was trying hard not to blush. "I got lost trying to find the ladies' locker rooms. This place is like a maze!"

"Yeah... I'll see you at later." Tokiya averted his eyes from her very tempting figure.

She started to walk back in the direction she had come from. A few steps shy of the next corner, she turned around and winked.

"By the way, Mi-Chan. Nice abs. You've been working out."

His brain didn't function quickly enough to form a reply. All he could do was gaze after her retreating figure as she rounded the corner at the end of the hall.

Tokiya let out a breath he realized he'd been holding. He was smiling again, and he couldn't seem to wipe it off his face.

What did wipe the grin off though, was the scene right behind him.

Recca, Domon, and Kaoru were standing outside the locker room doors with smug expressions. There was no doubt they had seen most, if not all that had happened.

And from those expressions on their faces, they weren't going to let him forget it.


	21. Photo Opportunities

**Chapter 21: Photo Opportunities**

Fuuko hurried into the showers of the ladies' locker rooms. Honestly! Her sense of direction was completely haywire in this place.

She turned the shower handle to 'Warm' and let the water cascade down her body. Unexpectedly, her thoughts turned to Tokiya Mikagami. Nice abs indeed. Of all people she had to see clad only in a towel, it had to be him!

It wasn't supposed to be a big deal. She'd already seen him half-naked before, at their Team Hokage pool-party-slash-get-togethers back in high school. But back then, he'd been a gangly nerd, with only a hint of muscle brought about by all his Ensui training.

She had seen Recca and Domon, and even Kaoru countless times without their shirts on. Even when Tokiya left for college, the rest of the team still trained together. It wasn't a big deal to her to see them like that. She even teased them about it. As a joke, they even switched Domon's navy boxers with zebra-striped ones, which he was forced to wear while training with his Madougou.

Fuuko tilted her head up so that the warm water from the shower hit her face.

_'It's not a big deal.' _She thought to herself over and over. _'He's just an old friend who's finally found his way back to us. And he's really been working out...'_

For what felt like the tenth time that day, Fuuko felt a blush color her cheeks. Darn that outrageously handsome  
>Eskimo!<p>

* * *

><p>"Nice abs, Mi-Chan!" Domon enunciated in a high-pitched, girly voice.<p>

"Yeah, you've been working out, handsome!" Recca cheeped as he elbowed ahead of them all.

"Did you bump into her on purpose?" Kaoru piped up.

Tokiya sighed, but he was still smiling. "Lay off. Alright?"

"Sure we will..." Recca turned around and pointed at him with a finger gun.

"NOT!" Domon finished for him.

Shigeo shook his head, chuckling to himself. "Kids these days..."

They guffawed and trooped down the hall to Room 3 and found Kurei waiting for them, already submerged in the hot spring.

"Come on in. Water's great." He leaned his head back and watched the rest of the boys step into the spring.

"Thank you again for inviting us here." Shigeo told him. "You even went through all the trouble to arrange transportation, meals... "

"No trouble at all." Kurei inclined his head courteously. "Neon and I thought it would be great to finally get everybody together."

A knock on the door interrupted them. "Master? It's me."

"Come in." Kurei called. 'They're all here."

The sliding doors opened to reveal the last person Tokiya wanted to see.

"Raiha." Kurei looked up. "So glad you could join us."

"Thanks for inviting me." The Raijin master closed the doors behind him and joined them in the spring.

_'So that's what the receptionist meant by 'party of seven'.' _Tokiya thought, meeting the looks his friends were giving him. They all had the same expression: Anger.

Shigeo could've sworn that the water's temperature had dropped by a few degrees when the young man named Raiha walked in. He watched each of his young charges in turn. They were all giving the newcomer looks of icy steel, and the coldest look of all came from Tokiya Mikagami.

"Been wanting to do some catching up with you guys." Raiha surveyed them all with his usual green-eyed thoughtfulness. "How've you all been?"

There were mumbles of "Fine." and 'Good." from Recca and Kaoru.

"Heard you had quite a drinking session at the bar last night." Raiha stretched, making his muscles bulge in the soft light.

_'Show off.' _Tokiya muttered.

"Not just at the bar, they raided the...OUCH!" Shigeo rubbed his foot, which throbbed from a well-aimed kick by his son.

Raiha seemed to take this all into stride before changing the topic. "So, Master Kurei, you wanted to talk to us about something?"

"Yes." came the reply. "Neon has been quite insistent that I get my groomsmen for the entourage fitting. It's going to be be done in my suite, day after the engagement party. And don't worry, it's not as torturous as it sounds."

They all laughed at that.

"Of course, little brother, you'll be best man?" Kurei turned to Recca.

"Me? Really?" The younger flame master sat up. "That sounds great, bro. I'd be happy to."

"Thank you." Kurei grinned and rested his arms behind his head. "You'll have to do a speech at the wedding reception."

"A speech?" Recca's jaw dropped.

"It's customary for the best man to give a speech about the bride and groom at the wedding reception." his brother winked. "Don't worry. You have two weeks to come up with one."

Recca looked as though he'd rather have a UBS rematch.

* * *

><p>The Green Fir Mountain Resort picnic area was a circular shaped grove surrounding a small, raised hillock of hydrangeas. Picnic tables were spread out in a clock formation for the guests who wanted to enjoy a meal out in the glorious sunshine.<p>

The weather was warm enough to wear shorts, but there was still that bite of cold that always came with an increase in altitude location in the mountains.

Fuuko pulled on her blue hoodie jacket and knelt down to bundle Tanya up. They were helping to set up the picnic lunch that Kagerou had prepared. Yanagi and Ganko had gone to get some extra food orders at the restaurant.

"Thank you." Tanya gave Fuuko an appreciative smile, as the latter adjusted the beanie on her head.

"Of course, sweetie." The wind-princess said. "You hungry? I think it's gonna be awhile before we get to eat though. The boys still aren't here, and the food-"

"Girls, could you set up the dishes we have here? I have to go back upstairs and get the other pot." Kagerou called, cutting her off.

"Sure thing." Fuuko replied, taking the two large platters from Kagerou's arms.

"I'll be right back." Kagerou hurried towards the hotel doors.

Tanya relieved Fuuko of one platter. "Neesan says I have to take a nap after lunch."

"He noticed, huh?" Fuuko set down the dish she was holding and unpacked the paper plates and plastic utensils from the picnic basket.

Tanya pouted as she set down the platter she was holding. "I didn't tell him why I looked so tired. I don't want him to worry."

Fuuko sat down and put a hand on the younger Mikagami's shoulder. "Either way, he'll worry. Why won't you talk to him about it?"

"I've never told anyone that I have nightmares." Tanya mused. "He already has too much to worry about, with me just suddenly arriving into his life. And... there's this look in his eyes. Like he's seen the pain that everyone hopes to get through a lifetime without... he looks so lost..."

_'No arguments there.'_ Fuuko pulled the little girl into a hug. Tokiya was right. It was easy to forget that Tanya was only seven. She noticed that look in her brother's eyes too.

"Both of you went through a huge loss, sweetie. It's alright to say it."

"I know." Tanya rubbed her eyes, tiredly.

"And you have each other now. Not to mention us. The entire team!" Fuuko smiled.

"Thank you." Tanya returned the grin with one of her own. "I wish my brother would fully accept that. He seems less lonely now, but whenever I catch him staring at Mifuyu-neesan's and our parents' photos, he looks like the whole world just crashed down on him..."

"It seems like you're really worried about him too."

"Can't help it." Tanya leaned forward to rest her chin on her hands. "After all the stories that my sensei told me about you guys winning the UBS, I thought that he would've been happy now. You know, moved on after such a hard trial."

"Well, we did get that Snowman to open up a bit, but then..."

"He left for college without saying goodbye." Tanya finished for her. "I don't blame you guys for wanting to beat him up for that. I would've felt the same way." She laughed.

Fuuko joined in.

"We're back!" Yanagi's voice announced. She and Ganko were carrying two large paper bags apiece. They were followed by Kagerou, who was carrying an enormous pot.

And coming out of the building where the hot springs were located came the boys, looking fresh from a dip and a warm shower.

"Right on cue." Fuuko winked at Tanya, who laughed louder as they went to help set up the rest of the picnic.

Delicious meats and heaping piles of fried rice were unwrapped. Kagerou uncovered the lid of the pot she had brought to reveal a scrumptious-looking chicken curry. The packages of paper plates and plastic utensils were torn open and passed around.

"Itadakimasu!"

Tokiya didn't suppress his grin as he looked around the picnic table. His friends were piling up the food on their paper plates and attacking the curry pot at the center. Even his sister, who was normally so well-mannered (like himself) was joining in the fun as the different dishes were passed from person to person.

Get-togethers like this always made him feel like he was part of a huge family. He couldn't deny the fact that he was part of this crazy, squabbling bunch of thug-thrashing galoots.

"Hey, Fridge-Boy!" Recca lobbed a napkin in his direction. "You said you _weren't _on a diet! Eat up, man!"

Tokiya caught the napkin inches before it hit his face and threw it back at the flame master. He let it thwack onto his friend's face before nochalantly reaching for a large bowl of fried rice.

His hand happened to brush Fuuko's as she was reaching for the same dish. They both blushed and withdrew their hands simultaneously, as though stung.

"Go ahead." Fuuko pushed the bowl towards him.

"No, please. You first." Tokiya pushed it back.

Both of them looked up as the whole table had gone quiet. When the rest of the team saw they had been caught staring, they returned to whatever they were eating and attacked it with a vengeance.

Tokiya felt his blush deepen as he picked up the serving spoon and leaned over to serve a helping to Fuuko first before putting some on his own plate.

"Thanks, Mi-Chan." Fuuko's smile nearly made him melt into a puddle.

"S-sure..." Tokiya gulped and tried to eat a spoonful of his food.

Unbeknownst to the two, several celfones vibrated under 'Silent' mode.

**SEND TO:** RECCA HANABISHI, ISHIJIMA DOMON, GANKO KIRISAWA, KAORU KOGENEI, SHIGEO HANABISHI, KAGEROU HOSHI

**PICTURE MESSAGE FROM: **SAKOSHITA YANAGI

All the recipients sneaked a look at their celfone screens. Sure enough, Yanagi had captured the moment wonderfully:

It was the exact instant Tokiya and Fuuko's hands touched on the bowl of fried rice. The moment when their heads looked up to meet each other's gazes.

_"Ha! Beautiful!" _ Kaoru grinned like a monkey with an entire bunch of bananas. He nudged Tanya, who was seated next to him, and showed him the captured photo.

Tanya grinned and mouthed 'Facebook' in Yanagi's direction.

The healer winked.


	22. Lighten Up

**Chapter 22: Lighten Up**

The whole team helped clean up as soon as lunch was finished. There weren't any leftovers.

"What are your plans for the afternoon?" Shigeo asked them.

"How bout bowling?" Yanagi suggested.

"Sounds like fun." Recca agreed. "Everybody game?"

There were murmurs of assent all around, but Tokiya spoke up. "I'll have to skip this one. Tanya needs a nap."

Tanya grumbled and pulled on her beanie. "Do I have to?"

"Yes." Tokiya said, firmly, taking her hand. "You may not have noticed, but you look like you're about to faint."

Tanya didn't bother to deny it, but allowed her brother to scoop her up into his arms.

"Guess we'll meet you back upstairs?" Shigeo asked, handing Tokiya the room keycard.

Tokiya nodded. He started off towards the hotel, Tanya waving forlornly over his shoulder at the rest of the team.

"Hope he doesn't become one of those overbearing/protective types." Recca said, waving back as the siblings disappeared through the revolving doors.

"Don't forget, he has to be both parent and sibling to Tanya." Kagerou placed a hand on her son's shoulder. "Let him be. He's still adjusting."

Tanya stifled a yawn as her brother carried her into the elevator. Having a full stomach wasn't helping. It only made her eyelids feel heavier. Still, she tried one last plea for her case.

"Come on, Neesan. Please? I really wanna see the bowling alley."

"No. Nap first." Tokiya adjusted her weight in his arms as he reached over to press the button for their floor.

"Wait up! Please hold the door!" a voice called out.

Tokiya pressed the 'OPEN' button and held it as another person darted into the elevator, carrying a load of file folders.

The person panted. "Thank you. That was really nice of you. I'm-"

"Raiha." Tokiya finished. "Good afternoon."

"Hey." Raiha grinned, shifting his folders to one arm so he could press the button for the penthouse suite. "No need to sound so temperamental. We're not opponents anymore."

Tokiya inclined his head. _'Wanna bet?' _He gritted his teeth.

"Hey, is everything okay with Tanya? What happened?" Raiha looked with concern at the small figure in Tokiya's arms.

"She needs a nap. Something she totally denies."

Tanya turned her head to look at Raijin master. "I'm fine." she insisted, before a covering a yawn with her hand. Finally, she gave up on fighting her weariness and settled her head on her brother's shoulder.

Raiha shook his head, laughing. "They're all so adorable at that age, huh?"

Tokiya managed a wry smile in his direction.

Raiha rearranged the pile in his arms. "Speaking of adorable, how's Fuuko doing? How's she liking the resort?"

A familiar feeling was boiling through Tokiya's blood. Undoubtedly, it was insane jealousy at the fact that this _loathsome_ ninja-wannabe had shared something special with the wind-princess, even though it was years ago. The familiarity with how he said her name - how it made him want to thrash the man right here and then in the elevator. And who cares if there was a CCTV camera in the upper left corner?

"Ow..." Tanya said in a small voice.

Tokiya snapped back to the present. "Sorry, sweetie." He mumbled apologetically to his sister. Apparently, jealousy made him squeeze anything he was holding.

He turned to Raiha and said "Fuuko's fine. From the looks of things, she's really enjoying herself here. They're all at the bowling alley if you want to see her."

"Thanks, man." Raiha grinned. "Maybe I will. I just have to get these to Kurei first." He indicated the pile of folders in his arms.

The door dinged open at the seventh floor and Tokiya formally bowed (as much as he could with his sister in his arms) in Raiha's direction.

"Later." Raiha called as the doors closed, shutting him off.

Through her almost-asleep state, Tanya heard the exchange between the two. Now she could hear her brother muttering to himself as he slot in the keycard to the boys' suite and carried her inside. He used his foot to close the door, then reached back to lock it behind him.

Tokiya gently lowered his sister down onto the couch and fetched a blanket from his room. He bundled her up in it and reached for the universal remote control so he could turn on the room's airconditioner.

"I don't trust him."

Tokiya looked around. "Hmm?"

"Raiha." Tanya mumbled sleepily. "I don't trust him."

"And why is that?" Tokiya pressed the 'ON' button on the remote and settled back down on the couch beside his sister.

"Something about him seems... off."

Tokiya suppressed a smile and pulled her head onto his lap. "Don't worry about him. Get some sleep. I'll wake you for dinner."

"Mmm hmm..." Tanya nestled closer.

* * *

><p>Kagerou obtained a spare keycard to the boys' suite from the check-in counter in the hotel lobby. Shigeo had asked her to stock up the boys' kitchen, as they were alternating the breakfast venues every morning.<p>

She reached the seventh floor,hauled up a few cereal boxes from the girls' suite and made her way to the boys', slotting in her newly borrowed keycard. The door suddenly jerked open causing her to drop all the boxes she was holding.

"Kagerou-san? Are you alright?" Tokiya's quiet voice came from the couch. He turned off the t.v. and made to stand up.

"I'm fine, dear. No need to stand." Kagerou dusted herself off and started to pick up the boxes she dropped.

Tokiya slowly maneuvered his sister's head onto a cushion and stood up anyway. He picked up some of the cereal boxes that Kagerou had dropped.

"Oh, I'm so sorry... Did I wake her?" Kagerou craned her neck to look at Tanya's sleeping form on the couch.

"Nope. She's passed out cold." Tokiya grinned and took the rest of the boxes from her hands. "Where do you want these?"

"In the kitchen, please." Kagerou grasped his arm gratefully. She watched as Tokiya neatly lined the cereal boxes in a row.

"If you want to join the others, they're still at the bowling alley." Kagerou smiled tentatively. "I could stay with your sister. After I bring in the rest of the breakfast food, I still have to clean up my son's closet, as well as his father's."

"Oh, no. I couldn't impose. I'll help you-" Tokiya strode out of the kitchen.

"Nonsense!" Kagerou put a hand on his shoulder. "Young man, it's about time you admitted to yourself that you need some fun with your friends. You've been away from them long enough, and now that you've come back, you still won't take the opportunities to spend time with them?"

"M-My sister..."

"You'll have plenty of time to spend with her. She's in your custody now, isn't she?" Kagerou put her hands on her hips. "And I'm sure she'll want you to make the most out of your teenage years. She wants you to be happy too, you know."

Tokiya opened his mouth to say something else, but Kagerou held up a finger.

"Not another word out of you, Mister. Go and have a good time. I'll see you all at dinner."


	23. Making A Strike

**Chapter 23: Making A Strike**

Tokiya made his way back to the elevator in a daze. Did _everyone_ really think that he didn't like to have fun? That he tortured himself on purpose? _'Geez.'_

He took out his celfone and typed in a quick message.

TO: RECCA HANABISHI

FROM: TOKIYA MIKAGAMI

**Coming down to join you. Still at the bowling alley?**

The elevator doors opened and he stepped inside. He pressed the button for the ground floor and leaned against the back wall of the elevator, taking deep breaths. Fun. He was going to have some fun. Be a teenager.

His celfone beeped.

TO: TOKIYA MIKAGAMI

FROM: FUUKO KIRISAWA

open message?

He felt his heart soar as he saw her name. He pressed the button to open the message and his smile turned into a smirk of amusement.

I**t's me, Recca. I dnt have cel credits. Yea we're still hir bowling alley. Shake a leg & get ovr hir. We guys r gttin' creamd by d ladiez.**

Tokiya let out a snort and stepped out onto the ground floor of the hotel. He went out of the revolving doors and made his way to the recreation area, following the signs that pointed to the bowling alley.

There was a hiss as the automatic doors opened for him. He blinked, letting his eyes adjust to the bright neon lights of the place. Trudging forward, he scanned the occupied alleys for any sign of his friends.

"OY, FROSTY! OVER HERE!" Recca's voice rang out.

Tokiya looked over to where Domon and Kaoru were waving.

"Go get some shoes, ya Popsicle!" Recca cracked his knuckles. "Now that you're here, it's time for some payback!"

"Assuming he's good." Fuuko grinned at her best friend and slid her fingers into a bowling ball. She walked onto the bowling lane and launched her bowling ball in a straight shot.

The ball collided with the pins at the end of the lane and felled every single one.

"STRIKE!"Fuuko crowed triumphantly. She slapped high-fives with Yanagi and Ganko.

"Awww, man! That's thrice in a row!" Kaoru groaned as the screen above them flashed the total scores.

"And we're leading by fifteen points! Way to go, Fuuko!" Yanagi cheered.

Tokiya rented his bowling shoes and approached the boys. "I leave you for a a little more than an hour, and this is what happens?" He bent to tie his laces.

"Wipe that smirk off and get your game face on!" Recca shoved a bowling ball into his hands.

"Ooof! Alright, you sea monkey. Calm down!"

Tokiya took aim and sped down the lane. He had tried bowling before, and he found that he could make better shots when he started at a fast pace. He launched the ball and slid his foot forward to stop himself from going further-

Too late. He had gone too far. In a split second, he had lost his footing and landed chin first on the bowling lane.

After the impact that seemed to resound inside his head and jostle his brain, he heaved himself up and turned to see his friends with peculiar looks on their faces. Like they were biting their lips.

He exhaled exasperatedly. "Go on. Laugh."

And they let loose with loud guffaws.

Domon had tipped over from his seat and laughed till he cried. "It looked like you were about to do a dive and then changed your mind at the last second!"

Recca wasn't adding his own wisecracks as he was rolling on the floor laughing like a hyena.

Fuuko was still stifling her laugh, but she walked forward to give him a hand up. "Still in one piece, Mi-Chan?"

Tokiya took her hand and let her heave him back up. Once again, his brain couldn't form a reply...

The sound of clapping behind them had them all turn to look.

"I'll give you a 3.5 for form." Raiha strode forward, grinning. "But that shot certainly did count." he pointed down the lane where Tokiya had made his pitch.

"STRIKE!" Domon punched the air.

"YOU'RE THE MAN, FROSTY!" Kaoru thumped him on the back.

As his male friends convened around him to slap high fives, Tokiya watched Fuuko out of the corner of his eye. She was still next to him, and she hadn't let go of his hand.

"Raiha..."

"Hey, Fuuko. Having fun?" her ex-boyfriend walked closer.

"Yeah..." Fuuko slowly let go of Tokiya's hand, but he grasped her fingers.

"That's good." Raiha surveyed them all. "Is it okay with you all if I ask her out to dinner tonight?"

Fuuko felt her heart clench. She looked over at her friends' expressions. They all clearly had the same sentiment.

_'No, it is NOT okay!'_

Tokiya slowly let go of her hand. He looked away.

_'What's up with that?' _ Fuuko thought, confused.

"You should ask _her._" Recca spoke up through gritted teeth.

All of them managed to plaster on strained smiles.

"If you insist." Raiha grinned more suavely. "What do you say, Fuuko? Will you have dinner with me tonight?"

"Yes... sure..." Fuuko finally answered.

"Excellent!" Raiha took her hand and squeezed it. "I'll come get you at your suite. 7th floor, right?"

Fuuko nodded.

"Right. Is 7 p.m. Okay for you?"

"Y-Yeah..."

"See you then." Raiha turned to the rest. "And I'll see you all at the engagement party."

They all managed sullen nods as the Raijin master left them.

When he had left the bowling alley, Recca rounded on his best friend.

"Why did you say yes to that DIRTBAG?"

"He's not a - how could you - you know how much he -" Fuuko couldn't finish her sentences, which the whole team knew was Danger Signal Number One.

Recca wasn't backing down. "So, you're into pretty-boys now? I never pegged you to end up with that type of-"

"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!" Fuuko yelled.

They both made towards each other, fists at the ready.

Sakoshita Yanagi stepped between them. "Stop it. Both of you. Now." she ordered. "Everyone's looking over here."

Sure enough, it seemed the entire crowd at the bowling alley was watching them with bated breath.

Fuuko lowered her voice. "It's just one dinner. What's the worst that could happen?"

"Ohh, nooo! Now she's jinxed it!" Domon slapped a hand to his forehead.

Not to mention Tokiya could think of a million 'worst' things that could happen.

"Please, you guys. Trust me. I got this." Fuuko looked at them all, pleadingly.

It was a long moment before Recca finally straightened up and picked up a bowling ball. "Fine. If you're that sure about it. Are we playing or what?"

* * *

><p>Tanya rubbed her eyes before opening them.<p>

_'How long have I been asleep?'_

She turned to look at a large clock on the wall of the boys' suite.

6:00 pm.

_'That long?' _She untangled herself from the blanket her brother had wrapped her in. She had slept a solid three hours.

She wobbled up. Ugh... she still felt tired, even after that long nap. This must be one of those 'all in the mind' things she read about in her brother's college textbook on basic psychology. What was it? Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. _A person who has experienced a traumatic event would often manifest symptoms of insomnia, nightmares, fatigue..._

Tanya shook her head to clear it. Remembering stuff from textbooks only made her feel more exhausted.

When she was sure she was steady on her feet, she fluffed out the blanket she had been using and started to fold it.

"Hi, darling." Kagerou peeked out from one of the rooms she was cleaning. "Had a good rest?"

"More or less." Tanya smiled wryly and rubbed her hand over her face.

"Well, it's almost dinnertime." Kagerou came out carrying an armful of clothes and clotheshangers. "You can go to sleep again right after. You still look awfully drained."

"I'll be fine." Tanya came over and relieved her of most of the garments and began to arrange them into piles according to color.

"You're just like your brother. So organized." Kagerou smiled as she sorted out the hangers.

"I had to learn to do my own laundry when I was old enough to understand the instructions on the detergent wrappers," Tanya said. "Sensei Megui said it was part of my training. She'd give me a time limit, and I had to be done sorting and washing all my clothes by then."

"But you're so young!" Kagerou knelt down next to her and tilted her chin up with a finger. "Forgive me for saying this, but it sounds rather harsh for her to expect that much from you at an early age."

"It wasn't that bad." Tanya smiled.

"Not according to _me_." Kagerou hoisted her back onto the couch and turned on the t.v. "Watch some cartoons. I"ll finish this."

Tanya obediently flicked through the t.v. channels till she found a good cartoon. She turned to Kagerou, who was continuing her sorting. "Thank you."

Kagerou gave her a kind smile. "You're a child, my dear. And you've already been through so much. Don't deprive yourself of all the wonderful experiences that only someone your age can appreciate. Come to think of it, I voiced some similar sentiments to your brother before I shooed him off him to go and have some fun. I told him I'd be the one to look after you."

"So that's why he isn't here." Tanya grinned.

"Mmm hmm." Kagerou winked. "Hopefully, I can get you both to stop acting older than your age."

A few more minutes of companionable silence passed between them with Tanya laughing once in a while at the antics of the cartoon she was watching. She rested her head on one of the armrests of the couch and felt a bit more at ease with herself ever since she came home to find her parents dead.

There was the telltale sound of a keycard being slot into place and the door was suddenly shoved open.

The Hokage boys all trooped in with faces like thunder.

Tanya felt her good vibes whoosh away in that instant.

"What'd I miss?" she managed to ask, looking from one boy to the next.

"We got beat by the girls at bowling by ten points, oh and Fuuko agreed to a date with that pretty-boy ex of hers." Recca plopped down next to her and ruffled her hair. "So you didn't miss anything, squirt. Nothing much."

Tanya raised her eyebrows.

"Anything good on?" Recca lifted his feet up to rest them on the coffee table. "Better than looking at your Eskimo of a brother here, who didn't even do _anything _to-"

"Hold on, you're blaming _me?_" Tokiya whirled around. "Like it's _my _fault that she said yes to a dinner date?"

"For someone so smart, you sure don't know much about good timing!" Recca stood up, fists balled.

"Okay boys, take it down a notch." Kagerou ordered, coming out of the kitchen. She handed Tanya a few packages of instant lemonade. "Ask Sakoshita to mix these up for me, sweetie. And tell her to put it in the empty pitcher in the fridge."

Tanya nodded and made herself scarce.

* * *

><p>Fuuko stepped out of the shower and wrung her hair dry. She had half an hour to pick out an outfit before Raiha came to pick her up. Yanagi and Ganko were rummaging through her suitcase and pairing up some tops and skirts.<p>

"Denim miniskirt?"

"Too skimpy for a dinner date. How bout this top?"

"Maybe. Will it look nice when paired with this?"

A knock on the door interrupted their train of thought.

"It's me, Tanya. May I come in?"

"I'll get the door." Ganko darted out.

"Hi, honey. What've you got there?"

"Lemonade mix. I'm supposed to ask Sakoshita-san to make some. Kagerou said..."

Sakoshita put down the skirt she was pairing up with one of Fuuko's tops and went out of the room.

"I'm here, Tanya-chan. Hand those over and I'll start the lemonade."

Ganko returned to her sister's room and continued to mix and match Fuuko's clothes.

'You okay?" She asked the wind princess. "Did you have anything in mind on what to wear?"

"No." Fuuko admitted, as she continued to blow-dry her hair.

"I like the top Sakoshita-san chose." Ganko held up the white blouse. "And paired with this." Ganko held up one of the skirts that Fuuko brought. It was a yellow one, with a hem that edged into gold.

"Looks good." Fuuko glanced at the clock again. "I'd better get dressed."

Ganko nodded and left the room.

Minutes later, Fuuko came out dressed in the ensemble that her sister and her best girlfriend had put together for her. She had pulled her hair back into a ponytail and put on some blue eyeshadow for effect. On her feet were her strappy wedge heels.

Tanya approached her squealing. "_Kawaii!_"

"Thanks, sweetheart." Fuuko pulled her into a hug.

_'Bet my brother would love to see you in that.' _Tanya thought, rather sadly. _'All this effort to look good for someone who broke her heart? I don't get it...'_

"Should I keep the night-light on for you? In case I'm asleep when you come back?" Tanya asked.

"Yes, please. I'd appreciate that, honey." Fuuko took her hand and led her to the kitchen, where Yanagi and Ganko were seemingly trying too hard to mix up some lemonade.

"I'm ready." Fuuko announced.

"Looking good, Sis." Ganko looked up. Yanagi smiled in approval.

A knock on the door.

"That's him." Fuuko picked up her clutch bag and took her blue hoodie jacket from the coat rack.

_'Deep breaths, Fuuko.'_

She pulled open the door to find-

"Mi-Chan?"

_'Wow...' _ was all Tokiya's brain could give to describe the vision of loveliness standing before him. This was Fuuko Kirisawa dressed up for a date- with a guy that wasn't _him._

Instinctively, he reached up to rub off her eyeshadow with his fingers.

"You look better without it."

Fuuko turned pink, which accentuated her beauty even more.

"Thanks..." She pulled a handkerchief from her clutch and wiped off the rest of the eyeshadow. Luckily, she had used the powder type that didn't smear.

"Neesan?" Tanya's voice came from behind Fuuko.

"Hey, sweetie." Tokiya tore his eyes from Fuuko and let them focus on his sister. "Could you call Yanagi and Ganko? Kagerou says we're having dinner over at our suite."

"Sure." Tanya disappeared back inside.

Tokiya's gaze returned to Fuuko, who was removing the last of her eyeshadow with her handkerchief.

She gave him a shy smile when he was done.

It was all he could do not to kiss her right there and then.

Instead, he blurted out "You look better without makeup."

Fuuko raised her eyebrows, and that pretty pink blush returned to color her cheeks again.

"Really?"

Tokiya nodded, still mesmerized.

"Well, thanks, Mi-Chan. It's the first time I've ever heard you tell me something like that."

"If it helps-"

"Sorry, I'm late!" A voice interrupted. It's owner came hurrying out of the elevator.

Fuuko leaned out the doorway to look down the hall. "He's here." she said, somewhat nervously.

"Hey, Fuuko. And hey, Tokiya-san." Raiha panted as he reached the doorway where the two were standing. "Sorry that I'm-" he checked his watch. "Two minutes and fifteen seconds late. The elevators were quite full and I had to wait for a while. Ready to go, Miss Kirisawa?"

"Yes." Fuuko stepped out of the door.

"Whoa..." Raiha pretended to reel backwards. "Man, I'm a lucky guy tonight! You look lovely."

"Thank you." Fuuko blushed for the third time in the past ten minutes.

"Shall we?" "He took her arm and linked it through his.

Fuuko nodded and followed him.

"Later, Tokiya-san." Raiha waved a hand in his direction.

Tokiya could only incline his head. He feared that he would punch Fuuko's date in the face if he had moved any other part of his body.

As he watched them walk towards the elevator, something made him smile.

Hanging on the crook of Fuuko's free arm was a blue hoodie jacket.


	24. The Stages of Grieving

**Chapter 24: The Stages of Grieving**

Fuuko stood next to Raiha in the elevator, feeling rather awkward having her arm linked through his. They hardly did that, even when they were together. Fuuko could only remember only two occasions when they had done so.

She sneaked glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. Dressed in dark jeans and a dress shirt with a blazer, he looked great. Ugh. It was hard trying to move on from heartbreak when your ex-boyfriend was drop-dead gorgeous.

"Why so quiet?" He asked, smiling.

"Nothing." Fuuko shook her head. "Just thinking..."

"About?"

"How long it's been... since we last... "

"Went out on a date?" Raiha finished for her. "It has been too long. But hopefully, that'll change."

_'He sounds so sure...' _Fuuko thought.

They stepped out onto the ground floor. Raiha led the way past the seafood and the Italian restaurants, going instead to the French bistro.

"Ah! good evening, Mr. Lino. Table for two?" the maitre'd greeted them.

"Yes." Raiha nodded. "On the balcony, if there's one available."

"But of course, sir." The man picked up a couple of menus and led the way inside.

Fuuko took a good look around as they walked in. It was easy to see why Raiha had avoided the seafood and Italian restaurants. The French bistro had a much more intimate ambiance, with private booths and secluded spots. Even the lighting was a bit on the soft side, since most of the tables were lit with large aromatic candles.

On the balcony, a grand view awaited them. Lights from the city below the mountain were scattered in different pinpricks of color, lending a spectacular feel to the evening.

"It's beautiful." Fuuko stopped to stare.

"I'm glad you think so." Raiha smiled.

The maitre'd pulled out Fuuko's chair for her and bowed her into it. He then handed a menu to each of them, raised his finger to summon a waiter, and bowed once more before returning to his post.

"Good evening sir, ma'am." The waiter greeted them. "How would you like to start off your meal tonight?"

Fuuko opened her menu and scanned the choices. Thank goodness for the fact that her mother was a chef, or she never would have known what on earth these dishes were.

"What would you like, Fuuko?" Raiha looked at her over the top of his own menu. "Please, order anything you want."

"Alright. I'd like the lobster bisque." Fuuko told the waiter.

"Yes, ma'am. And for your main course?"

Fuuko flipped her menu over to the list of entree's. Wow. There was a lot to choose from, and all of them sounded delicious. She sighed inwardly. If this was a dinner with the rest of Team Hokage, no one would care how much she ate. And her appetite was as huge as Recca's and Domon's. Apparently, she was going to have to curb that tonight and act more ladylike.

She ran her finger down the page.

"Four-cheese risotto, please."

The waiter nodded and listed it down on his order pad. "And for you, sir?"

"French Onion soup for starters, and the quarter cut prime rib as the main course."

"Very good, sir. May I bring you anything from the bar?"

"Champagne. The Luxe Vine 1892."

The waiter smiled and nodded. He repeated their orders before he left to fetch their drinks.

"Impressive." Fuuko commented.

"What is?" Raiha asked.

"Champagne. The Luxe Vine 1892." Fuuko intoned in an outstanding imitation of his voice.

Raiha laughed. "It's one of my favorites. I hope you'll like it too."

"Only one way to find out." Fuuko replied, as the waiter returned with two champagne flutes and a bottle of the said wine.

* * *

><p>Back up at the boys' suite, everybody was busy, either helping to cook dinner or setting the table.<p>

Domon even lent his muscles and took over kneading the dough they were using to make pizza bread.

Sakoshita looked up from where she was stirring the pot roast.

"Tanya-chan? Would you be a dear and hand me the pepper?"

"Sure." Tanya reached up into the shelf of condiments and handed over the small pepper shaker.

She stuck her nose into the pot and inhaled. "Smells great!"

"Thanks, honey." the healer poured in a teaspoon of ground pepper. "Right. That should do it."

She lifted the stirrer to her lips and had a taste of the pot roast.

"Hmm... still needs a little something." She spooned up a bit more and let Tanya try it. "What do you think?"

Tanya swallowed and looked thoughtful. "I only tried cooking pot roast once, and that was with my Mom. Hmmm..." she wandered off to the fridge, opened it, and came back with a fruit.

"A lemon?" Yanagi raised her eyebrows.

Tanya's smile lit up her silvery eyes. "As Mom always said, if you want to add a bit of spark to a dish, use a fruit."

Yanagi watched as the younger Mikagami sliced up the fruit and squeezed out the juice. She poured a teaspoon of it into the pot roast and had a taste.

"Hmm. A bit more." Tanya added another teaspoon and stirred it in some more. She had another taste and her eyes lit up. She handed the stirrer back to the healer.

Sakoshita tried it for herself and nearly dropped the pepper shaker.

"Mmmm! And I mean MMMMMM!" She gave the little firestarter a hug. "That's what I call delightfully tangy!"

* * *

><p>"Recca?" Tokiya straightened up from where he was setting placemats.<p>

"Oh, so you're talking to me now? Thought you were mad at me." Recca grinned as he came over with a stack of plates.

"I was mad. But not at you." Tokiya helped his friend with the place settings.

"At whom, then?"

"At myself. Because everything you said was right. I should've spoken up back at the bowling alley. And that's thrice Raiha's already shown me up today..."

"Back up a second there, Fridge Boy. Thrice?" Recca stopped short.

"Yeah." Tokiya told him about the chance meeting at the elevator, and seeing Fuuko before she was picked up for their dinner date.

"Well, I won't argue with you. I was right. You really don't have a sense of timing." Recca said, breezily, as he continued to put out the plates.

Tokiya elbowed him in the gut. "They have a history together. No use for me to deny that. She's still not over him."

"Uh huh." Recca snorted. "I kinda thought that with you back in the picture, Raiha would remain _history_." he reached over for the container of spoons and forks.

"Hey, relationships don't generate out of thin air. Maybe it's too soon."

"It's been a little over _three years_, Tokiya." Recca almost slammed a fork down next to one of the plates. "Three years of us seeing her go through the motions of moving on. I know you weren't there to see it, but believe me when I say it was _unbearable_ seeing her cry when she thought we didn't notice."

Tokiya didn't look up from where he was arranging another place setting. "He wants her back now."

This time, Recca did slam down the fork her was holding. He crossed the table and grabbed the Ensui master by the front of the shirt.

"He wasn't the right guy for her before. What makes you think he's the right one for her _now?_"Recca disgustedly tightened his grip. "I can't believe this. You're giving up even before you take a chance!"

"I want her to be happy." Tokiya pried his friend's hold off his shirt. "And if she consents for them to be together again, I won't get in the way. I don't want to make her choose between me and the man she obviously still has feelings for."

"Stop acting like such a martyr!" Recca began banging down a fork on every place setting Tokiya had arranged. "If you want her, you'll fight for her. No second thoughts about it."

_'I don't 'want' her, sea monkey. I LOVE HER.' _Tokiya thought, as he relieved Recca of the silverware."I can't, Recca. Not till I know she wants me too."

_'Then you're blind.' _Recca refrained from voicing this thought aloud as he savagely tore open a package of paper napkins. _'The day she got over Raiha was the day you came back into our lives.'_

* * *

><p>The bottle of <em>Luxe Vine<em> sat at the edge of the table. It was half empty now.

Fuuko fought the urge to grab it and down the remaining contents in one swig. The past half-hour had been all about catching up. Of course, Raiha already knew most of what she was going to say, as he kept finishing her sentences for her. Turns out he'd been keeping tabs on her whereabouts, as well as her activities. He knew what year she graduated high school, and that she'd chosen to major in Mathematics at Tokyo University.

Then of course, there was that unavoidable conversation of who they'd dated after their breakup. Fuuko wasn't surprised when Raiha told her that there had been two special ladies that captured his heart, 'but not in the way that _you_ do, Fuuko.'

Of course, her dating record was clean. She didn't have the heart to pursue another relationship, even after the so-called 'grieving process' that Yangai and Ganko, and sometimes, even Recca, Domon, and Kaoru would quote to her from various 'How to Move On From Heartbreak' books:

Denial. Anger. Bargaining. Depression. Acceptance.

She'd experienced 48 hours of the Denial stage before moving on to Anger, which involved trashing her room to pieces, removing every gift Raiha had ever given her and dumping each one into the large garbage bin outside the Kirisawa residence.

Bargaining had gotten her to call his celfone number about fifty times, realizing he wasn't going to pick up.

And Depression? She did the whole enchilada:

Inhaling tubs of ice cream. Crying till her eyes were an awful red. Not leaving her room for three straight days. Refusing meals. Refusing to answer any text messages or take any phone calls...

She had been a wreck. A total miserable wreck.

The day she finally came out of her room was the day Ganko had called in the cavalry. Yanagi, Recca, Domon, Kaoru, and even Kagerou had all taken turns pleading with her from outside her door. Their pleadings had turned into threats of busting the door down and dragging her downstairs.

In the end, she finally agreed to come out and have something proper to eat. She couldn't help but smile at the expressions of relief on her teammates' faces as they watched her polish off a bowl of dumplings and rice.

Her mother had been worried about too. She overheard her expressing a tearful and heartfelt thanks to her friends for finally getting her to come out of her room.

After that, it had been all about giving herself some love. She went back to team madogou trainings and get-togethers, got her grades back on track, and grew out her hair.

She had to admit, pampering herself did help ease the pain. The day it was totally erased though came years after, when she bumped into a certain silver-haired Eskimo and his little sister at the park near her new apartment.

Fuuko smiled to herself and ate another spoonful of her risotto. On that day, she felt she had already reached Acceptance.

But this 'date' right here made her want to add another stage to the grieving process.

Confusion.

Raiha had been nothing short of gentlemanly during the course of their meal. Except for the part where she learned he was keeping tabs on her. That was severely creepy. And with him finishing all her sentences, she could barely get a word in edgewise throughout the conversation.

He changed a lot over the past few years they had been apart, and not just physically. He was more domineering now. He liked being in control, and from his stories of all the business deals he handled for Kurei's company, what he wanted, he usually got.

Some women usually found that alluring. The whole 'macho' image with the wealth that came with the package. It gave some semblance of stability that gave the illusion of a good relationship.

_'An illusion he's probably only too aware of.' _Fuuko let out a breath and downed the small amount of champagne left in her flute before blinking a few times in reaction to its rather bitter aftertaste.

"More?" Raiha picked up the bottle and offered to pour for her.

"Sure." Fuuko pushed her flute closer to him.

"How do you like the taste?"

"It takes some getting used to." Fuuko admitted, licking her lips.

"You've changed so much." Raiha leaned back in his chair and smiled. "The old Fuuko would have ordered half the menu and said no to anything less than hard liquor."

Fuuko raised her eyebrows. "If I remember correctly, I embarrassed you at plenty of restaurants for doing that."

"When did I- I never-"

Fuuko laughed. "You seem to have very selective memory."

Raiha leaned forward. "What do you mean?"

"Whenever you would take me out to eat, you would always tell me to order whatever I wanted, and when I did, you'd always wonder _out loud_ why I would eat like a boorish man and still stay fit. Then when we finished eating, you were always in a hurry to leave because you'd notice everyone was staring at us. I really embarrassed you with my big appetite, didn't I?"

Fuuko took a long breath after blurting all that out. She had been bottling up that sentiment for years, written in different versions on her diary. It felt so _liberating_ to finally say it out loud.

Raiha's jaw was scraping the table. "I- Well, you-"

"Not to mention that you'd always tell me how to dress." Fuuko reached over to steady his hand on the wine bottle "Which led me to assume that you thought I didn't know what the words _'formal attire' _meant."

He still couldn't formulate a complete sentence, which Fuuko took as an opportunity to lay all her cards out on the table.

"It's okay to admit that Kurei wasn't the only reason why you broke up with me." she took the bottle from his hand and poured for both of them. "I think you thought I was too immature for someone like you. And I probably was."

Raiha dropped his gaze for a long moment. He made to reach for his champagne flute, but sighed instead.

"It pains me to hear that you think of me that way, Fuuko."

"Because it's true?" Fuuko asked in a teasing voice. "Come on. It's all in the past now. We've both moved on. It's okay to talk about it."

He shook his head. "You've thought of me that way these past two years?"

"Yeah. When I wasn't busy trying to forget you."

"Now that hurts." He lifted an eyebrow and leaned closer. "I never forgot _you_."

"Really?" Fuuko snorted. "You're this rich, successful businessman now. I find it hard to believe you haven't found anyone at all."

"How do you know I was actually _looking_?" he smirked.

"Because you're _you_, Raiha." Fuuko leaned forward to meet his gaze. "If there's one thing I haven't forgotten, it's how easily you pushed me away."

"Looks like I'm going to have to change that impression I made on you." he clasped her hand.

"What do you mean?"

He grinned. "Come with me."

* * *

><p>Up at the boys' suite, the Hokage Gang were digging in to a scrumptious dinner of their own. The pot roast had turned out terrific, the pizza bread was nothing short of delicious, and the mounds of mashed potatoes had a scintillating aroma that would make an anorexic rethink her diet.<p>

Shame that the silence around the table had a certain, should we say, _atmosphere_...

Only the clink of spoons and forks were heard, along with the subtle sounds of chewing. Occasionally, someone would reach for his or her glass to take a drink.

Finally, Recca slammed his hand down, causing the dishes to rattle.

"Recca!" Kagerou frowned at her son, her hand steadying one of the serving platters.

"I can't take this, Mom!" the flame ninja balled his hands into fists. "Fuuko's out with that -"

"Who she goes out with is her choice." his mother admonished him firmly.

"Am I the only one who thinks it's a bad idea?" Recca threw down his napkin and stormed from the table.

"Please excuse me." Sakoshita apologized and stood up to go after her boyfriend and protector.

Tokiya watched as the healer barely got into Recca and Domon's shared room before the ninja slammed the door. He shut his eyes and willed himself to swallow his food.

"Is that why you've all been so quiet?" Shigeo raised an eyebrow to survey them all. "It's about Fuuko going out with that ex of hers?"

Not one of the kids could look him in the eye. They all tried to focus instead on what seemed to be a temper tantrum going on in Recca's room as he seemed to be yelling colorfully over Sakoshita's attempts to soothe him.

They finished their meal in silence, mumbling their offers to help with the dishes and put away the leftovers back in the girls' suite.

"I suggest you all go to sleep. It's been quite a day." Kagerou told them all gently. "And I'd better go help Yanagi-san with that son of mine."

The teen Hokage members all began bidding each other quiet goodnights.

Tanya wrapped her arms around her brother in what she hoped was a comforting hug.

"Will you be okay?" she asked him.

"Mmm? Yeah. I'll be fine."

_'He's lying.' _Tanya thought, gripping his arms for a brief moment before letting go and following Kagerou and Ganko back to the girls' suite. It seemed like it worked both ways. Tokiya could tell when she was lying, and she could tell when he was lying. Must be a sibling thing.


	25. One More Try

**A/N: **Thank you to all my beloved reviewers and readers! I'm glad you like how the story is coming along. I've had so many ideas, I just have to put them all in chronological order. I don't own A1's song!

**Chapter 25: One More Try**

It was Fuuko's turn to have her jaw nearly scrape the ground.

Raiha had led her outside the hotel to an area of the resort where gazebos had been built. One gazebo in particular, had strings of lights decorating it, and a CD player was set up in the right hand corner.

Fuuko watched as he pressed play and the first notes of a song that she recognized to be A1's 'One More Try' began to fill the air.

_Could be your eyes_

_Could be your smile_

_Could be the way you freed my mind_

_Your precious touch caressed my soul_

_You gave me everything I need_

_And now I'm lost _

_Lost forever_

_(I'm lost forever)_

Raiha bowed expertly and held out his hand. "Dance with me?"

"S-Sure." she placed her hand into his and allowed him to lead her to the center of the gazebo.

_And you said, this is going nowhere, girl_

_And you said, I turned my back on you_

_You said, I'm not the only one for you_

"Is it too much?" he asked, grinning while he steered them in a slow circle.

"That's not exactly how I would describe it..." Fuuko admitted.

"How then?"

"I think _sudden_ is more the term I'm looking for."

_Please give it one more try for the sake of our love_

_Please give it one more chance 'cause I can't give you up_

_I can't live one more day without you in my arms_

_I could never find another like you_

She felt him rest his head on her shoulder and hold her closer to him, making her heart pound in faster rhythms. She closed her eyes, trying to revel in the moment... yet still, there was this nagging feeling in the back of her mind that this was _wrong, wrong WRONG!_

'_Why?_' she scolded herself. _'This is a date that EVERY girl dreams of having!'_ she forced herself to sway with the music and awkwardly leaned her head against Raiha's.

Still nothing. Not a trace of that old spark she felt whenever they were together. Instead, she felt vaguely... _repulsed._

_Could be the lies, could be my pride.  
>Could be the days and nights so wild.<br>Could be the times I wasn't there.  
>And all the nights we didn't share, and now you're lost.<br>Lost forever_

_(Lost forever)_

Why could that be? Why, when this moment was everything she was waiting for these past few years they'd been apart? What could possibly be _so wrong?_

_And you said, this is going nowhere, girl_

_And you said, I turned my back on you_

_You said, I'm not the only one for you  
><em>

_Please give it one more try for the sake of our love_

_Please give it one more chance 'cause I can't give you up_

_I can't live one more day without you in my arms_

_I could never find another like you_

The wind started to pick up, making the lights around the gazebo sway gently. Despite her powers over that particular element, Fuuko was not immune to its effects on her human body. A small breeze lifted up the few loose strands of hair that had come loose from her ponytail. She felt its chilly caress on her cheek... yet her body felt warm...

Then she remembered with a grin. She was wearing her blue hoodie jacket from Tokiya.

_I can't sleep, I can't live without you by my side._  
><em>So cold, so lost without as my guide.<em>  
><em>You made me realize I've got nothing, nothing without you.<em>

_Please give it one more try for the sake of our love_

_Please give it one more chance 'cause I can't give you up_

_I can't live one more day without you in my arms_

_I could never find another like you  
><em>

This date. This dance. This moment. She was doing all this with the wrong person!

_That's_ what was wrong.

_Baby give me one more try._

The music stopped, and the two pulled back to look at each other.

"You're smiling." Raiha held both her hands in his. "Does that mean I actually did something right tonight?"

"In a way." Fuuko slowly pulled her hands out of his. "Look, I don't know if there's an easier way to say this, but here goes..." she put her hands on his shoulders.

"I think- I mean, I _know_ that getting back together with you is not an option for me."

Raiha's eyes widened. "Wh-What do you mean?"

"Raiha," Fuuko tilted his chin. "This date is everything I've ever dreamed about us sharing. But that was when we were together. And honestly... I've gotten over you."

_'Whoa... it feels so good to finally tell him that!'_ Fuuko exhaled and fully let go of him.

Raiha looked as though she had clobbered him on the head.

"Please say something..." she grasped his arm tentatively.

He seemed to recover when she touched him again. "You're right. There is no easy way to say it." he smiled the smile that held no charm for her now.

"I'm really sorry...I just don't want to egg you on." Fuuko told him.

"I'm glad you told me." Raiha grasped her elbows.

She raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, I was hoping for something along the lines of "I love you too, Raiha. This was the best date ever!""

She laughed. "One out of two isn't bad, I guess. It was a wonderful date."

"Thanks." he gripped her arms.

Fuuko smiled. "Guess we should part for the night? I know I kinda... dropped a bomb on you."

"It's okay... really. I'll walk you back up to your suite." Raiha took her hand.

"That's sweet of you, but I'd rather you didn't." Fuuko squeezed his hand and reached up to hug him.

He hugged her back a little tighter than she would have expected before pulling back.

"You still owe me that dance at the engagement party though." he grinned.

"You got it." Fuuko smiled and fully pulled back from his embrace. She gave him a little wave and started walking out of the gazebo.

"Fuuko, wait."

"Yes?" she turned back around.

"Is it... someone else?"

"Raiha-"

"Just- just tell me."

Fuuko sighed. "To be honest, I'm not sure at the moment."

"But... do I still get the chance to court you again? Start over?"

"No... Raiha..."

"Just one more try?"

Fuuko sighed again. "Goodnight, Raiha."

Then she turned and walked back to the hotel.


	26. This Time

**A/N:** Hey! I hope you all didn't hate Raiha so much, even though he really didn't know the meaning of the word 'NO.' He gets a bit dark and obsessive here. Anyway, here's another chapter with a song. ;-) I just really thought it fit this part of the story. I don't own 'This Time' by Pia Tuscano. And try listening to it before you read this chapter.

**Chapter 26: This Time**

"Finished." Tanya said softly to herself.

It was nearing midnight, and the younger Mikagami was still awake, barely being able to sleep from the events of the day. Her nightmare bared its ugly fangs again, and she still woke up screaming. Lucky thing she didn't wake anyone up...

She lifted up her sketchbook and took a good look at her latest creation: a drawing of Fuuko in her 'date outfit'. From the way her brother was gaping earlier, he totally loved her in those clothes...

She sighed. Why do they always say that growing up complicated things? From her point of view, it was simple, really. If you like someone, _tell _them.

If only she could have gotten Tokiya to do that a little earlier, Fuuko wouldn't be out on that stupid date...

She tore out her latest drawing from her sketchbook. She'd give it to her brother in the morning.

* * *

><p>Fuuko swiped in the keycard to the girls' suite, feeling frustrated. Why did he have to ask <em>that<em> question? _Start over?_ Geez! Being with him felt even more wrong by the second!

She swung the door softly closed and finally kicked off her heels. Boy, did the carpeted floor feel great on her aching feet!

To her surprise, the kitchen light was on... and there was a little figure huddled on one of the breakfast nook chairs.

"Tanya?" Fuuko came over and put her hand on the little girl's shoulder, making her lift her head up. "What are you doing here? You should be in bed, asleep."

"I tried. Honest!" Tanya protested, groggily. "I wish my nightmare would leave me alone!"

"How long have you been up?" Fuuko helped Tanya down from the chair.

"Since half past ten." Tanya replied, quickly hiding her new sketch and scooping up all her drawing materials.

"It's past midnight! It's way late for someone your age to still be up." Fuuko led her out of the kitchen and turned off the light.

"I know." Tanya whimpered miserably. "But you can't possibly make me sleep now... I'm too scared."

"Well," Fuuko winked, put her clutch down and led her to the beautiful upright piano in the living room area of their suite. "We'll have to fix that. Do you know how to play the piano?"

* * *

><p>The door to one of the luxury suites of Green Fir Mountain Resort Hotel opened with a sudden movement and closed with a slam. Raiha shrugged off his blazer and unbuttoned his shirt. He quickly made his way over to a divan where a crystal decanter and a few liquor glasses were held. Disregarding the selection at his disposal, he pulled open the decanter's stopper and drank three huge swallows, reveling in the fiery sensation that pained his throat.<p>

_'She doesn't want me back.'_

In a fit of unsuppressed rage, he threw the decanter across the room where it broke, spewing crystal shards and whiskey everywhere.

His hands moved to the right-hand pocket of his jeans where he pulled out a key. Fumbling his way through unlocking one of the drawers on the divan, he finally yanked it open to reveal his prized madougou: the Raijin.

_'Our elemental weapons were meant to fight, but you were MEANT to be with me! ME!'_

Raiha took a few deep breaths to calm his anger, bracing himself on the divan for support.

_'I'll get you back, Fuuko Kirisawa.' _he thought.

_'Because if I can't have you... no one will.'_

* * *

><p>Fuuko turned on one of the living room lights before sitting down next to Tanya on the piano chair, watching the little girl play a few sweet notes on the instrument.<p>

"My parents taught me how to play. One of the only times I ever got to spend with them before my madougou training had to come first." the little firestarter brushed away a tear threatening to fall from her cheeks.

Fuuko took out a piece of sheet music from her wallet. It was very creased but still readable. She had torn it out of a book of songhits.

"'This Time' by Pia Tuscano." Tanya read aloud. "I've never heard this song before..."

"The one who sang it is one of the contestants on American Idol." Fuuko smiled. "And I've been keeping a copy of it with me, waiting for a chance to finally sing it freely."

"What do you mean?" Tanya looked up, confused.

"If you can play it for me, you'll see." Fuuko's smile widened.

Tanya looked over the sheet music, mumbling the cords under her breath. A grin spread over her face.

"I can play this for you, but hold on a minute."

She ran back to their shared room and brought back her digital camera and a hairbrush.

Fuuko raised an eyebrow. "What are those for?"

"A microphone." Tanya handed her the hairbrush. "And documentation." she set up the camera on top of the piano.

Fuuko laughed at the spontaneity of it all. "We're making a music video in the dead of night?."

Tanya nodded, the familiar look of mischief lighting up her tired silver eyes. "Ready?"

"Yes." Fuuko stood up as Tanya angled the camera towards her and pressed 'REC.'

The younger Mikagami keyed in the first notes and nodded her head to cue Fuuko to start.

_Well I'm mad as hell  
>I ain't gon' take it no more<br>My bag is packed up at the back of your door  
>'Cause I don't know who I am no more<br>You won the battle but you lost the war  
>I've been in denial, now I'm living the truth<br>Been down for a while, now I'm standing up to you_

Tanya had to focus on the notes to keep in time, but it was hard to, especially when she heard Fuuko's beautifully melodious voice.

_'I didn't know she could sing like that!' _Tanya grinned in wonder, watching her friend dance barefoot around the room, singing her heart out.

_This time, this time I'm gonna do it my away  
>This time, I'm finding out the hard away<br>This time, I'm gonna go back to the girl I was on the night you found me  
>No more, holding back the real me<br>Just wait, in a minute you'll see  
>This time, this time, it's my time<br>Getting back to the real me_

Fuuko sang as loudly as she dared, her pretend microphone in her hands. It felt so _free_ to finally sing this song and feel it to be truth! She spun in a circle and belted out the words louder.

_Don't try to stop me with the words you say  
>'Cause I'm sick and tired of the games you play<br>I'm gonna free myself, gonna make a change  
>And like a butterfly, I'mma spread my wings<br>Been crying for too long, now I'm drying my eyes  
>Grounded for so long, now it's time for me to fly<em>

_This time, _

_This time I'm gonna do it my away  
>This time, I'm finding out the hard away<br>This time, I'm gonna go back to the girl I was on the night you found me  
>No more, holding back the real me<br>Just wait, in a minute you'll see  
>This time, this time, it's my time<br>Getting back to the real me_

Fuuko danced back to where Tanya was seated and continued to sing. Her little pianist was frowning in concentration. Fuuko grinned and sang the last few stanzas.

_I'm mad as hell  
>I can't take it no more<br>My bag is packed up at the back of your door_

_I promise you, this time!_

_This time, this time I'm gonna do it my away  
>This time, I'm finding out the hard away<br>This time, I'm gonna go back to the girl I was on the night you found me  
>No more, holding back the real me<br>Just wait, in a minute you'll see  
>This time, this time, it's my time<br>Getting back to the real me_

Tanya keyed in the last few notes and reached up to end the recording on her camera. Turning to her friend, she exclaimed happily. "I didn't know you could sing like that!"

Fuuko laughed. "It's not a talent I usually advertise."

"Well, the only one who knows how I sing is the _shower_!" Tanya grinned widely and began to scroll through her camera. "You have a gift, Fuuko-san! You shouldn't try to hide it."

Fuuko smiled back and put an arm around her. "Thanks, sweetie. Now come on. Time for bed."

"But-" Tanya protested.

"No buts." Fuuko held up a hand to silence her. "Don't be scared. I'm right here. Nothing will hurt you."

Tanya looked dubious, but followed her to their shared bedroom and allowed herself to be tucked into bed.

"Goodnight, sweetheart."

"Technically, it's already morning." Tanya mumbled.


End file.
